86th Texas Legislative Session 01/08/19 - 05/27/19 thread of fail

[Pam Cummings 9641]

Anyone associated with that tea party nonsense is always a fucking idiot.

[Larry T. Spider 1746]

45 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

Not everyone agrees that it’s a problem that school property taxes are shared across districts.  I don’t have kids but pay a decent amount in school taxes in Houston.  Im ok that a school district in south Texas gets a portion of my tax money as opposed to hisd receiving the full amount. 

Or is your concern related only to the formula that I assume is used to decide how much some districts pay?

The problem isn’t that aisd is sharing money. The problem is that 46% of Austin’s money goes elsewhere. That amount is equal to all salaries paid by the district from bus driver to superintendent. As a result, you can teach for 10 years and have a masters degree in Austin and not hit 50k. Many other districts are able to start first year teachers at more than that which puts us at a huge competitive disadvantage. We have had to close schools because they are crumbling while a district in south Texas built a water park. This forces the district into passing bonds they shouldn’t have to because bond money can’t be touched by recapture- but asks even more of our taxpayers.

Under this plan, the schools in south Texas will continue to get the same money. Roughly half will come from the state and half from wealthy districts. AISD will continue to send over 500 million to other districts.

[Bookman 4639]

Are you suggesting ending local property taxes for school districts and imposing a state income tax?

[tx 3 putt 76957]

Horrible idea 

[Larry T. Spider 1746]

53 minutes ago, Bookman said:

Are you suggesting ending local property taxes for school districts and imposing a state income tax?

I’m assuming this was directed at me. I’m suggesting doing almost exactly what the lege did in this session. They got it almost exactly right, which means I should be buying lotto tickets.

1. Increase the average daily attendance funding attached to students.

2. Ensure that a good portion goes to raises for teachers but allow districts some flexibility on how the rest is spent.

3. Have the state kick in some money to reduce the burden of recapture on districts paying a ton into the system.

4. Shore up TRS a little more - was already in ok shape.

Bonnen deserves a lot of credit for getting this done and getting people to work together. In my 12 years in education, this is the first session where I feel like we are leaving better off than we started.

[Nice Guy Eddie 13512]

Is the $500-700m leaving AISD the reason they are not paying more to their teachers?   Is their budget per student lower than most other districts?  I don’t doubt they could spend those funds on improved buildings or more resources but is it needed?

i know little about Austin but I’m fairly sure that Houston isd has more money than they need due to the ridiculous increases in property valuation over the last decade and what appears to be a stable student population.    It’s anecdotal but half the schools I drive past seem to have major capital improvements and many have relatively small student populations.  Aren’t most hisd high schools either 4A if not 3A?

[Larry T. Spider 1746]

13 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

Is the $500-700m leaving AISD the reason they are not paying more to their teachers?   Is their budget per student lower than most other districts?  I don’t doubt they could spend those funds on improved buildings or more resources but is it needed?

i know little about Austin but I’m fairly sure that Houston isd has more money than they need due to the ridiculous increases in property valuation over the last decade and what appears to be a stable student population.    It’s anecdotal but half the schools I drive past seem to have major capital improvements and many have relatively small student populations.  Aren’t most hisd high schools either 4A if not 3A?

Yes, it is the main reason teachers are not paid more. AISD is desperate to pay more but we were in the process of cutting 30 million this year to keep up with recapture payments. We cut all lunch monitors, a bunch of services, and each campus has their budget from the district reduced across the board. You can’t take 46% of a districts budget and expect anything but drastic cuts.

Most aisd schools need significant work due to age. We passed a billion dollar bond that will help with a lot of things but it never should have happened. We could have paid for it without the bond if we were keeping more of our own money.

You are correct that HISD and area schools are doing better. They pay 2x less into recapture despite being 5x bigger as far as enrollment and the funding that goes with it. 

Edit: under the new bill HISD will go from paying over 300 million in recapture to 0. AISD will go from over 700 million to 550ish. 

Edited May 26, 2019 by Larry T. Spider

[Message Board User 12395]

 

[Ghost of LL 15531]

Well, there was that one thing--fuck you, Whitley!

[cactusflinthead 27598]

I wasn't sure what to make of Bonnen before this session. He appears to have something resembling a clue.

Quote

 

The group, Empower Texans, has trashed Bonnen all year for tanking bills that would have furthered anti-abortion efforts and strengthened certain gun laws. Empower Texans, aligned with the tea party, has funneled millions of dollars into Texas elections. Dozens of lawmakers followed the organization’s lead in early 2010, although the group’s electoral victories dwindled to about 10 in the November midterm elections. The group did not respond to a request for comment Monday afternoon.

 

Other groups, such as Texas Right to Life and Texas Gun Rights, also have criticized Bonnen’s leadership on those issues.

 

“They aren’t worth responding to,” Bonnen told reporters Monday. “If we passed every pro-life bill filed in the history of the state, they would say we had not done enough. You will never please or appease those folks and I’m sure as hell not going to waste my time trying.”

 

 

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/House-Speaker-Bonnen-pours-water-on-Texas-GOP-s-13899364.php?utm_campaign=CMS Sharing Tools (Premium)&utm_source=t.co&utm_medium=referral

 

edit: He also fired a warning shot at dickheads 

Quote

Bonnen threatened political retribution against members who campaign against each other ahead of the 2020 elections, as had happened in the 2018 midterms. That year, for example, Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford, sent members of his staff to Houston to campaign against Republican Rep. Sarah Davis.

 

Edited May 28, 2019 by cactusflinthead

[atomheartbevo 89666]

Bonnen gives me a little hope about Rs in Texas.

[DanRydell 799]

Well, there was that one thing--fuck you, Whitley!

I don’t know that it’s going to happen but by resigning immediately before adjournment, Abbott is now allowed to re-appoint him until 2021.

[Ghost of LL 15531]

2 hours ago, DanRydell said:

 

I don’t know that it’s going to happen but by resigning immediately before adjournment, Abbott is now allowed to re-appoint him until 2021.

 

I don't know why Abbott would poke that particular bear.

[DanRydell 799]

I don't know why Abbott would poke that particular bear.

I don’t either but leaving that door open is the only real reason to resign.

[B00M 6416]

Here's what's interesting to me about HB3...

Top recapture payers:

Austin $588M

Plano $155M

Eanes $96M

Highland Park $92M

Pecos-Barstow $94M

Grapevine $49M

Midland $42M

Wink-Loving $39M

Carrizo Springs $37M

Cotulla $36M

Lake Travis $35M

La Porte $35M

.

.

.

Houston goes from paying in $300M to $0

Dallas goes from $186M to $12M

Round Rock $52M to $0

 

 

 

 

[bolverk 29672]

1 minute ago, B00M said:

Here's what's interesting to me about HB3...

Top recapture payers:

Austin $588M

Plano $155M

Eanes $96M

Highland Park $92M

Pecos-Barstow $94M

Grapevine $49M

Midland $42M

Wink-Loving $39M

Carrizo Springs $37M

Cotulla $36M

Lake Travis $35M

La Porte $35M

.

.

.

Houston goes from paying in $300M to $0

Dallas goes from $186M to $12M

Round Rock $52M to $0

 

 

 

 

Where are you getting this list and the numbers? I'd be curious to see it.

On another topic, this is easily one of the best things to come from the lege this year:

 

[Nice Guy Eddie 13512]

Is the Legislature just setting the recapture amounts for each ISD, or is there a formula that can listed?  I would assume there is some level of cost per student that is used to determine how much an ISD is exceeding and someone is just coming up with the amounts with showing their work.

[B00M 6416]

On 5/25/2019 at 11:38 PM, Larry T. Spider said:

As I said before, reducing the amount of recapture that AISD pays is the biggest concern. Under the new plan, we will go from paying over 700 million to a little under 600 million. While this is a lot of money, it still puts Austin at a significant disadvantage. Other nearby districts such as round rock will pay 0 into recapture.

https://house.texas.gov/_media/pdf/committees/FY20-HB-3-CCR-District-Runs.pdf?link_id=4&can_id=9c3810ea26bfc0c3b78a20f8bdbd4c6b&source=email-your-weekly-briefing-special-report-on-school-finance-and-pay-raises&email_referrer=email_554086&email_subject=your-weekly-briefing-special-report-on-school-finance-and-pay-raises

Link to recapture data quoted ^

[Larry T. Spider 1746]

9 hours ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

Is the Legislature just setting the recapture amounts for each ISD, or is there a formula that can listed?  I would assume there is some level of cost per student that is used to determine how much an ISD is exceeding and someone is just coming up with the amounts with showing their work.

There is a formula but good luck figuring it out. It goes on for pages like this. Main point is that if you have a ton of propety value and relatively few students, the state is going to redistribute a lot of it, which is fine. The formula just really screws AISD.

Until this session, I know the formula was never adjusted since it’s inception. At the time, rich suburban districts paid in the most. But the rapid rise of the big cities has wreaked havoc on the formula, especially for Austin isd.  Declining student enrollment + property value is going up = bad news.

https://tea.texas.gov/Finance_and_Grants/State_Funding/Chapter_41_Wealth_Equalization/Chapter_41_Wealth_Equalization/

Sec. 41.002. EQUALIZED WEALTH LEVEL. (a) A school district may not have a wealth per student that exceeds:

(1) the wealth per student that generates the amount of maintenance and operations tax revenue per weighted student available to a district with maintenance and operations tax revenue per cent of tax effort equal to the maximum amount provided per cent under Section 42.101(a) or (b), for the district's maintenance and operations tax effort equal to or less than the rate equal to the sum of the product of the state compression percentage, as determined under Section 42.2516, multiplied by the maintenance and operations tax rate adopted by the district for the 2005 tax year and any additional tax effort included in calculating the district's compressed tax rate under Section 42.101(a-1);

(2) the wealth per student that generates the amount of maintenance and operations tax revenue per weighted student available to the Austin Independent School District, as determined by the commissioner in cooperation with the Legislative Budget Board, for the first six cents by which the district's maintenance and operations tax rate exceeds the rate equal to the sum of the product of the state compression percentage, as determined under Section 42.2516, multiplied by the maintenance and operations tax rate adopted by the district for the 2005 tax year and any additional tax effort included in calculating the district's compressed tax rate under Section 42.101(a-1), subject to Section 41.093(b-1); or

(3) $319,500, for the district's maintenance and operations tax effort that exceeds the amount of tax effort described by Subdivision (2).

(b) For purposes of this chapter, the commissioner shall adjust, in accordance with Section 42.2521, the taxable values of a school district that, due to factors beyond the control of the board of trustees, experiences a rapid decline in the tax base used in calculating taxable values.

[Message Board User 12395]

 

[Message Board User 12395]

 

[RPM 26321]

On 5/28/2019 at 10:30 AM, Ghost of LL said:

I don't know why Abbott would poke that particular bear.

 

29 minutes ago, Message Board User said:

 

Because he's an entitled prick? 

[Message Board User 12395]

 

[RPM 26321]

He signed a law that let's red light cameras stay as long as they are under contract. It doesn't outlaw them. But it gives you a warm and fuzzy.

[tx 3 putt 76957]

Fuck that douche 

[Message Board User 12395]

11 hours ago, RPM said:

He signed a law that let's red light cameras stay as long as they are under contract. It doesn't outlaw them. But it gives you a warm and fuzzy.

Actually, the contracts may end with the change of law.  For example, Fort Worth - 

In Fort Worth, there are 58 red light cameras at 44 intersections. The city contracts with Verra Mobility, formerly known as American Traffic Solutions, to run the cameras.

An amendment added to the bill lets cities keep operating the cameras until their contracts with vendors expire. Fort Worth’s red light camera contract expires in 2026.

But Fort Worth residents may see the cameras disappear sooner than that. City attorney Sarah Fullenwider told the Star-Telegram earlier this week that the city’s contract with the vendor that operates the cameras would end as soon as Abbott signed the bill.

Read more here: https://www.star-telegram.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article230697554.html#storylink=cpy

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article230697554.html

[elfenix 34240]

Can't find the thread, can I buy beer before noon today?

[CooterBrown 18012]

What’s the status of Daylight Savings Time? Do we get a vote on which time to move to?

[orangecat92 306]

Sounds like with 20% increase in per student funding and 30% of that having to go to teacher raises, teachers are getting some relief.  Is it that simple, every teacher will get at least a 6 percent raise?  (.30 x .20 = .06)

I don't believe per student funding has ever gone up that much in one wack, since maybe HB 72 - No pass,  no play? 

 

 

 

 

[Longhorn_Fan68 33870]

Figured this was as good a place as any for this. Finally got a response back from esteemed Senator regarding my marijuana petition:

Dear

 Longhorn_Fan68

Thank you for contacting me regarding federal laws on marijuana. I appreciate having the benefit of your comments on this important issue.

In recent years, several states have legalized marijuana for medicinal and recreational purposes. While I respect the rights of states to set their own marijuana policies, I believe more research and student should be conducted before the federal government changes its policies. Regular use of marijuana has been associated with psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders, as well as a risk of developing dependence. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission office of Behavioral Health Sciences found in 2016 that 16,886 Texans who entered substance use treatment cited marijuana as their primary substance of abuse. This number represents 22.8 percent of the total population of Texans who sought treatment in 2016, making marijuana the second most prevalent substance behind alcohol for substance use disorder treatment. Other mental health disorders like anxiety, depression, and cognitive impairment have been found in those who use marijuana. Additionally, marijuana use has similar effects on adolescent brain development as other addictive substances. We must further understand the public health risks associated with marijuana use. As Chairman of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, I will continue to work with my colleagues to better understand the health effects of marijuana and other substances.   

From 1999 to 2017, more than 700,000 Americans died from a drug overdose. This epidemic kills Americans from every socio-economic class, educational background, and community. Reducing addiction to prescription opioids and combating the influx of illicit narcotics in our communities is critical to helping patients in distress and fighting back against criminal cartels. Reasonable minds can disagree, but I am concerned that marijuana legalization could make this epidemic worse. I am committed to working with my colleagues to end the opioid epidemic and save lives.

In an effort to combat the scourge of illicit drugs in our communities, I authored the Substance Abuse Prevention Act (S. 2789; 115th Congress), which reauthorized the Office of National Drug Control Policy and important drug demand reduction programs at the Department of Justice. More specifically, S. 2789 provides critical funding for programs that prevent youth substance abuse disorder, reduce demand for illicit drugs in our communities, and provide crucial assistance for drug addiction recovery in the criminal justice system. S. 2789 also provides critical resources for High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Forces to support federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies that are working to remove illegal drugs from our communities. The Substance Abuse Prevention Act was included in the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act (P.L. 115-271), which I supported and President Trump signed into law on October 24, 2018.

I always appreciate when Texans take the time to reach out and share their concerns. Thank you for contacting me.

Sincerely,

JOHN CORNYN

United States Senator

What a douchecanoe.

[WBT 20572]

On 6/9/2019 at 5:01 PM, CooterBrown said:

What’s the status of Daylight Savings Time? Do we get a vote on which time to move to?

Died in the senate

http://www.fox4news.com/news/texas/daylight-saving-time-bill-dies-in-texas-senate

[Frank Erwin 203]

I have friends that grew up with Bonnen.  They describe him as very conservative.  He strikes me as a real conservative--not the grandstanding,showboating demagoguery that we get with Danny Goeb and to a lesser extent, Wheels.  Bonnen also has a backbone, is brash, and doesn't back down from a fight.  He might be exactly what we need to stand up to these faux conservative rabble-rousers like Empower Texas and Jonathan Stickland. Maybe if other traditional conservatives see somebody in power standing up to these poseurs, they will get some testicular fortitude as well.

[Voldemort86 2259]

21 minutes ago, Frank Erwin said:

I have friends that grew up with Bonnen.  They describe him as very conservative.  He strikes me as a real conservative--not the grandstanding,showboating demagoguery that we get with Danny Goeb and to a lesser extent, Wheels.  Bonnen also has a backbone, is brash, and doesn't back down from a fight.  He might be exactly what we need to stand up to these faux conservative rabble-rousers like Empower Texas and Jonathan Stickland. Maybe if other traditional conservatives see somebody in power standing up to these poseurs, they will get some testicular fortitude as well.

I like him. He seems to let the house decide and actually vote on things. The lieutenant governor is a fucking idiot who legislates based on emotion and his personal opinion. He will forever be an embarrassment to Texas.

[orangecat92 306]

Anybody know anything about the bill to kill the STAAR test?  I googled, yes, and found nothing.  I think it was a house bill.  

[RPM 26321]

7 hours ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission office of Behavioral Health Sciences found in 2016 that 16,886 Texans who entered substance use treatment cited marijuana as their primary substance of abuse. This number represents 22.8 percent of the total population of Texans who sought treatment in 2016, making marijuana the second most prevalent substance behind alcohol for substance use disorder treatment.

The only reason they were "abusing" marijuana is it's illegal and they got caught with some. If it was legalized and they weren't arrested for possession, they wouldn't be "abusing" marijuana. Funny how that works.

[atomheartbevo 89666]

Austin ISD sent out an email describing the coming pay raises - 7% for those teachers with more than 5 years experience, etc.  They didn't waste any time.  Problem is 5-10 years is a prime time for teachers to leave for other districts, maybe this will keep a few around.

[TexEx15 17528]

25 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

Austin ISD sent out an email describing the coming pay raises - 7% for those teachers with more than 5 years experience, etc.  They didn't waste any time.  Problem is 5-10 years is a prime time for teachers to leave for other districts, maybe this will keep a few around.

My wife is a teacher and I’m glad this is somewhat tangible even if it is only essentially offsetting recent increases in the cost of insurance.

It is however well short of Ol Danny Boy’s campaigning on a $10k raise but that really shouldn’t surprise anyone.

[Texas Jeff 1945]

On 5/28/2019 at 12:10 PM, Nice Guy Eddie said:

Is the Legislature just setting the recapture amounts for each ISD, or is there a formula that can listed?  I would assume there is some level of cost per student that is used to determine how much an ISD is exceeding and someone is just coming up with the amounts with showing their work.

The formula is complex, but the basic concept is not hard to understand.

Each school district raises funds to pay the employees and funds to build the buildings.  There is a tax rate to pay the employees, called M&O, which is about the same for most districts.  There is a tax rate to build the buildings, called I&S, which varies from district to district.  For example, Austin's M&O rate is $1.079 with an I&S rate of $0.113, Del Valle's M&O rate is $1.04 with an I&S rate of $0.35.  Put the M&O and the I&S numbers together and you have the tax rate for the school district.  Multiply the tax rate by the taxable value of your home, divide by 100 and you get your annual school tax bill.   

The part for the buildings (I&S) goes up when your district passes bonds.  They decide they need to build something, pitch the idea to you, hold an election, borrow money if the election passes, and figure out the tax rate based on how much money they need to pay back the loan, just like you would for a house payment.  Del Valle's rate for this part is higher than Austin partially because the total value of everything in their district is lower than Austin and partially because they have been building stuff (borrowing money).  For example, Del Valle has an indoor football practice facility and Austin ISD has, well, a bunch of grass and weeds.  They do mow the weeds...

All of the money for the buildings stays in the local school district.  It is not part of Robin Hood (recapture).  Recapture comes from the money to pay the staff.

To pay staff, the state uses a formula to decide how much money is needed to educate the kids in that district.  The formula is really complicated, but it's roughly so many dollars per kid per day.  In theory, this tax rate is determined by your local district. In reality, most districts are stuck at the maximum rate they are allowed to charge, around $1.02 to $1.17.

In each district, the money they collect for staff is the M&O rate times the total value of the property in the district.  The state says the money they need is so many dollars per day per kid, using the complex formula.  If the amount of money they collect is greater than what the state says they need, the district has to give the extra money to the state.  If the amount of money they collect is less than what the district says they need, the state gives them extra money to fill the gap.  The amount of money the school district has to pay the staff is decoupled from the amount of money they raise via taxes.

Since there are two funds, one for the staff and one for the buildings, a poor school district can vote to build a football stadium or new school and also receive Robin Hood money from the state to pay their teachers.  That is why you see things like a Jumbotron at the Seguin stadium, or a water park at a school district in the valley.  There are limits to what they can borrow, but one part is separate from the other.

When Austin ISD says they sent $500 million to the state for recapture, what they mean is that the money raised to pay the staff was $500 million more than what the state calculated that they actually needed to educate their students.  Since they were over the limit, they have to send the excess money to the state.  From 2002 to 2019, around $3.7 billion has been collected from Austin taxpayers and been diverted to to pay staff somewhere else.

That, in a nutshell, is recapture.  

Edited June 14, 2019 by Texas Jeff

[orangecat92 306]

The  fun thing will be for a prospective homeowner going forward, to try to figure out the property tax rates for different ISDs because each ISD going forward will have a distinct maximum tax rate based on their revenue.  I  remember very clearly my search in that vein, years ago.  In our neck of the woods, we had basically two options, Frisco ISD and McKinney ISD.  Today, the same search would have included Princeton as well - probably others.   Princeton is doing a wonderful job.  Back then Princeton was not a consideration at all, because they were so incredibly small.  I studied the property tax records and realized even though McKinney had higher property tax rates, their real estate values were lower than Frisco's.  McKinney ISD won, and good call by me in hindsight, because while Frisco ISD had a lower rate, they would eventually pass a TRE, just like McKinney did, but the growth in real estate values in Frisco ISD totally obliterated McKinney ISD's growth.   I also benefited from the housing crisis at the time.  There were three foreclosures on the street in McKinney in 2004.   One was a VA, the other two FHA.  We chose one of the FHA ones and our two kids ended up doing very well, while they walked to grades 6 through 12.  

The thing I did not anticipate that might be somewhat addressed by this property tax legislation is that McKinney ISD had some serious big spenders out there.  One year I was with the tea party group that protested the possible new swimming pool, "aquatic center" they called it.  For some reason the school board actually listened to us, this one time, and cancelled the ridiculously high priced swimming pool.  The big spenders eventually won really big, with the $70 million football stadium.  In hindsight, the school board was simply run by the big contractor who I can't remember the name of right now.  When the new schools stopped being built, there became a new term in McKinney ISD, "refresh".  Existing schools needed a "refresh", which meant new AC, desks, chairs, bookshelves, flooring, etc.  The local contractor won all of the bids for these remodeling operations.  One summer I worked for a clean up operation and we destroyed most of the inside of McKinney High School.  Perfectly good desks, chairs, etc. that were just a bit aged.  It was a demolition company.  Boom! all of that stuff thrown in the trash.  

This hit me recently because the same thing happened the other day in McKinney, at an elementary school.  The district is so cavalier about wasting money now that they put the furniture outside, and then later the demo. company came in and destroyed the furniture but left the mess outside.  Some McKinney taxpayers are now finding out what has been happening for years, wrt wasting money on "refresh" for a property, and throwing away potential dollars - older furniture.  Rene Bates auction company takes care of this stuff, but sometimes districts don't go with the auction company, for some unknown reason.  

So the question to me is does this new property tax bill stop the wasting money attitude of districts?  Nothing will stop McKinney ISD, imo.  I already told a teacher friend who lives there to expect the big spenders to come back and demand an aquatic center again, or maybe something else similar.  The next big project will probably exceed $100 million.  

I think the big spenders will find a way to get even more things that should be M and O to be covered by bonds.  Bond tax rates will go up at most ISDs and then the districts will lobby for a higher tax limit for I and S.  Moving forward, the challenge is on for taxpayers to get involved and try to reign in things like "refresh" spending.  

 

 

 

 

 

[Larry T. Spider 1746]

On 6/12/2019 at 1:00 AM, orangecat92 said:

Sounds like with 20% increase in per student funding and 30% of that having to go to teacher raises, teachers are getting some relief.  Is it that simple, every teacher will get at least a 6 percent raise?  (.30 x .20 = .06)

I don't believe per student funding has ever gone up that much in one wack, since maybe HB 72 - No pass,  no play? 

 

 

 

 

It’s not quite that simple because in the old formula certain students were allotted more money. The new formula is roughly a 20% increase for all students but takes away some of the extra funding attached to certain students. Still a big overall win for districts. 

Austin came out with 7% for experienced teachers and 6% for everybody else. I would guess that nearby districts will do something similar but haven’t heard any announcements yet. AISD jumped first because of the struggle to retain teachers with our huge recapture payments (still over 500 million), the high cost of living, and the traffic from the burbs, which is where teachers can afford to live. They also increased the stipend for bilingual teachers, which is our biggest shortage.

Its certainly not life changing money but it’s really nice to end a legislative session like this. First time in my career. 

[Texas Jeff 1945]

It will be interesting to see how this plays out in future years.  The state is going to constrain the M&O growth by 2.5% per year by "compressing" tax rates (forcing them to go down so that the revenue does not go up by more than 2.5% per year).  This is great for taxpayers but I suspect the growth in cost of education will be more than 2.5%, so the effect will be that every year the Robin Hood payments will get smaller and smaller.

In theory, the state is going to step in to provide money to fill that gap.  In reality, they really didn't provide a funding mechanism (a tax) to do that.  They are OK for the next two years but beyond that who knows.  I read one paper that said they could fill the gap by constraining state government spending elsewhere, but who knows if that will happen.

If the state fails to provide funding, then non-Robin Hood districts will start to feel a pinch as Robin Hood funds drop.  Robin Hood districts (wealthy) will be OK for a while, but tax rate compression may mean there are eventually no Robin Hood districts and their funding is also capped and reliant on the state to fill the gap.

If school spending rises more than 2.5% per year, I think we are on a path to eventually eliminate Robin Hood.  I could be wrong...

Edited June 16, 2019 by Texas Jeff

[orangecat92 306]

If we are indeed on a path to eliminate Robin Hood, then I think there would be another lawsuit by a district that was used to getting Robin Hood money and the courts could rule to force the legislature to put in more money.  I for one would like to see education funded at a certain % by state funds.  The past few legislatures let the state % get far too low, imo.  

Btw, the real impact of compression seems to be that districts will simply get creative and move the spending from M and O money to bond money, because districts are allowed to have a bond rate of 50 cents.  The only districts that will not try that are the high growth districts who are already at 50 cents for bond money.  

 

 

 

[atomheartbevo 89666]

Don’t know where to put this.  A thousand National Guard troops and their families and employers are not going to be keen to vote (R) next year    

https://www.kxan.com/news/texas-politics/texas-big-three-to-hold-friday-press-conference/

Quote

Texas “Big Three,” Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dennis Bonnen announced “stop-gap measures” to assist U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Texas Friday.

Abbott said the Department of Homeland Security will be setting up “temporary holding facilities” to house migrants after they cross the border into Texas. He said “single adults” that will be held at these facilities while they wait for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to transport them.

To assist CBP, Abbott said 1,000 National Guard troops will be sent to the border in addition to the 1,000 troops that are already there. The troops will help man the “temporary holding facilities” and will also be sent to ports of entry to assist CBP.

 

[Js1 85336]

That fucking fat fuck Stickland is not running next year.  Get the fuck out. 

 

 

[relapse98 634]

Left to spend time with his insecticide.

[Pescado_Rojo 19416]

After winning the Cockroach award from Texas Monthly, there's nothing left for him to accomplish. 

[Ghost of LL 15531]

You know, I hate him.  But his shenanigans on the last day that the House could pass Senate Bills made me very happy, as I had a client that would have been very adversely affected by a bill that was about sixth on the agenda when the clock struck midnight.  So I have a small soft-spot in my heart for Sticky.

But yeah--fuck him.   

[Voldemort86 2259]

3 hours ago, Js1 said:

That fucking fat fuck Stickland is not running next year.  Get the fuck out. 

 

 

Would much rather see Danny Goeb leave. That guy is a fucking bitch.

[tx 3 putt 76957]

Booming job market for high school drop outs. Fuck Bedford, TX for electing that dumb fuck 

[DanRydell 799]

It will be interesting to see how this plays out in future years.  The state is going to constrain the M&O growth by 2.5% per year by "compressing" tax rates (forcing them to go down so that the revenue does not go up by more than 2.5% per year).  This is great for taxpayers but I suspect the growth in cost of education will be more than 2.5%, so the effect will be that every year the Robin Hood payments will get smaller and smaller.
In theory, the state is going to step in to provide money to fill that gap.  In reality, they really didn't provide a funding mechanism (a tax) to do that.  They are OK for the next two years but beyond that who knows.  I read one paper that said they could fill the gap by constraining state government spending elsewhere, but who knows if that will happen.
If the state fails to provide funding, then non-Robin Hood districts will start to feel a pinch as Robin Hood funds drop.  Robin Hood districts (wealthy) will be OK for a while, but tax rate compression may mean there are eventually no Robin Hood districts and their funding is also capped and reliant on the state to fill the gap.
If school spending rises more than 2.5% per year, I think we are on a path to eventually eliminate Robin Hood.  I could be wrong...

This financial cliff they’ve created is Republicans’ insurance policy against a Dem takeover. If Dems actually were to win some statewide power in 2-4 years, they’ll be forced to either support a tax increase or to roll back the teacher pay increases. If Republicans keep power, they’ll just cut women’s healthcare some more or something else white evangelicals don’t care about to make up the gap.