Houston Matters
Bettencourt And Huberty Discuss Report By Texas Commission On Public School Finance
Posted on · One of the highlights is proposing to reform the state's recapture system.
Tag: Paul Bettencourt
Houston Matters
Full Show: Texas Public School Funding, And The Year In Education (Dec. 20, 2018)
Posted on · On Thursday's Houston Matters: We discuss proposed recommendations for comprehensive school funding reform, by the year 2050 the over-65 population will more than triple. We discuss the challenges facing the state and Houston. Also, we review the complicated year in education with News 88-7’s Laura Isensee, and we treat you to our version of "Twas the Night Before Christmas”.
Texas
Lawmakers Expect To Focus On Juvenile Justice Reform In Upcoming Legislative Session
Posted on · The U.S. Department of Justice is currently investigating some of the juvenile courts in Harris County, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Red, White & Blue
WATCH: With The Midterms Over, What’s Next For The Texas Legislature?
Posted on · Catch the latest episode of "Red, White and Blue."
News
Bi-partisan Commission Tackles Public School Funding in Texas
Posted on · The commission comes 18 months after the Texas Supreme Court declared the current way "unconstitutional" -- but deeply flawed. The group of lawmakers and educators hope to send a recommendation to the next legislature that convenes in 2019.
News
Who’s Ready To Pay For Flood Prevention
Posted on · The problem is no governing body so far has formally approved what could be billions for huge construction projects
Hurricane Harvey
Mayor Turner’s Lowered Tax Hike Proposal Doesn’t Satisfy Critics
Posted on · Houston’s mayor has cut his proposed one-time property tax hike to pay for the recovery from Harvey in half, but it's still too much for some.
Houston Matters
Bill Would Toughen Penalties for Improper Teacher-Student Relationships
Posted on · Texas Sen. Paul Bettencourt introduced SB 7 that passed unanimously in the Senate (March 7, 2017). The proposed bill toughens penalties for educator misconduct in Texas — specifically to crack down on improper student-teacher relationships. It’s been a topic of interest for some lawmakers and educators for a number of years now. How big is […]
Full Show
Whole Woman’s Health Clinic Reopens, and Improper Teacher-Student Relationship: Thursday’s Show (May 11, 2017)
Posted on · It’s been nearly a year (June 27, 2016)) since the US Supreme Court struck down two provisions of a Texas law regulating abortion. The clinic at the center of the case in Austin is reopening to patients for the first time in three years, the first to do so since Texas’ House Bill 2 forced […]
Local
Turner Warns Of Layoffs If Pension Plan Is Not Approved
Posted on · The Mayor says "hundreds" of police officers and firefighters would be impacted.
Local
Mayor Turner Expects Bill For City’s Pension Reform Will Be Filed In The Next Two Weeks
Posted on · The boards for HPD and municipal workers agree on 95 percent of the plan as it will be presented to the Legislature, but Turner notes the firefighters “are not moving as fast.”
Education News
Texas Senators Start To Tackle Budget For Public Schools, School Finance
Posted on · For now, lawmakers still have to deal with the current, complicated system. That includes recapture, where wealthy districts pay money back to the state to share with poor ones.
News
Judge Ed Emmett Is Concerned About Potential Property Tax Reform In Texas
Posted on · Harris County already serves about two million people living in unincorporated areas and he says they need the revenue the taxes provide.
Texas
Will 2017 Be The Year The Texas Legislature Reforms Property Taxes?
Posted on · Texas now has one of the highest median property tax rates in the nation, and it’s climbing fast.
Texas
Bettencourt Pushes For Crackdown On Sexual Misconduct By Teachers
Posted on · The state senator has pre-filed a bill that would criminalize “passing the trash,” the practice of transferring problem teachers or administrators to other school districts. Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick says passing the bill is one of his top priorities for 2017.