Texas Legislature Monthly Report September 2018

SENATE: Special Election Run-off in Senate District 19 - Retired Game Warden Peter Flores increased the Republican majority in the by winning the September 18, 2018 Special Election Run-off to fill the unexpired term of Senator Carlos Uresti. Uresti was found guilty in federal court on February 22, 2018 of 11 counts of fraud and was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison on June 26, 2018. Here are the results: • Peter P. Flores - 23,576 votes/52.99% • Former Congressman - 20,911 votes/47.0% Senator Uresti resigned his Senate seat effective June 21, 2018. Senator Uresti’s unexpired term runs through 2020. This win for the Republicans increases their Texas Senate majority to 21-R’s/10-D’s. Peter Flores will be sworn in as the newest member of the Texas Senate on October 12, 2018. On September 28th, he announced his chief-of-staff will be Harold W. Stone, who was most recently Director of Inter-Governmental Relations at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, where he previously served as Legislative Liaison. Prior to that, Stone spent over a decade working for the Texas Senate Finance Committee, including for former Senators John Montford and Bill Ratliff. He holds a Master of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Arts from Texas State University.

HOUSE: Representative Running for Speaker - On September 6, Rep. Four Price announced his candidacy for Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives.

Announced candidates for Speaker of the Texas House: • (R-Fulshear), • Phil King (R-Weatherford), • Tan Parker (R-Flower Mound), • (R-Nacogdoches), • Eric Johnson (D-Dallas), • (R-San Angelo), and • Four Price (R-Amarillo)

ENVIRONMENT: Texas Commission on Environmental Quality – On September 4, Governor Abbott named Jon Niermann chair of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The commission protects the state's public health and natural resources consistent with sustainable economic development. 1

Jon Niermann has served as a commissioner since September 2015. Previously, he served as chief of the Environmental Protection Division in the Texas Attorney General’s Office, and as an attorney at Baker Botts, L.L.P. He is a member of the Western States Water Council and the Good Neighbor Environmental Board. Niermann received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a Master of Business Administration and a JD from the University of Oregon.

State Water Implementation Fund Advisory Committee – On September 25th, Lt. Governor Patrick announced the appointment of Senator Lois Kolkhorst to the State Water Implementation Fund for Texas (SWIFT) Advisory Committee. The SWIFT Advisory Committee makes recommendations to the Texas Water Development Board regarding the use of money in the state water implementation fund. It reviews the overall operation, function, and structure of the fund and provides recommendations to the board. Senator Kolkhorst replaces Sen. Craig Estes who will not be returning in the 2019 session.

PRIVACY: House Select Committee on Cybersecurity – On September 26, the House Select Committee on Cybersecurity took up its interim charges on: Election Security - The state of election security in Texas. Keith Ingram, Director of the Elections Division of the Texas Secretary of State’s office said that HB 8 from last session requires his office to conduct a study of vulnerabilities and risks for a cyber-attack against the election systems themselves at the county level, as well as the statewide electronic voter registration database. He said, “I am pleased to report that there have been no documented cyber-attacks - successful or otherwise - on our voting systems, our voter registration systems, or our election infrastructure in Texas.” He discussed four areas of election infrastructure: Public Facing Websites – He talked about the public facing websites that the state and the counties have. It is important that these websites remain available and that they provide accurate election information to the voters throughout the process. These websites are housed with state-of-the-art security, in a format which is scalable in real time as demand for the site increases closer to the election, and especially on election day. His office is making available comprehensive Election Security Assessments, which assess various components of county election security, available to all 254 counties. Candidate Management, Election Returns, and Canvassing - The candidate management, election night returns, and canvass piece are currently managed in-house at the Secretary of State’s office. They are in the process of implementing multi-factor authentication on these programs, and it will be in place before this election. These programs are segmented from one another in different programs. The goal is to upgrade to one sustainable, secure end-to-end system – from candidate filing through the canvass of the general election, and his office is currently exploring options to do so. He clarified that the reporting of unofficial election results online is different from actual election results. If a

2 malicious actor were to manipulate posted vote totals or if there were a DDOS attack on the website reporting the attack, the actual results would not be affected. There are contingency plans to record vote totals in another format that can be projected to the public and reported from by media. Statewide Electronic Voter Registration Database - The statewide electronic voter registration database contains personal information of Texas voters. It is accessed by approximately 2200 users through a web interface. As such, it may be more vulnerable to hacking attempts than the actual voting equipment. But, he repeated, “we have had no attempted or successful cyber-attacks on the Texas statewide electronic voter registration database.” He added that his office is “clear-eyed about the fact that such attacks could be possible, and we are taking every step possible to ensure that any such attack would be unsuccessful.” His office has instituted multi-factor authentication for all of the users who have access to the web application for the statewide electronic voter registration database and has encrypted the data itself. Texas was one of the first states to obtain a federally-funded Albert Sensor on the VR database to monitor traffic. If anything malicious is detected, the information will be shared so that other states can take appropriate precautionary measures to protect their elections infrastructure. Voting Equipment - The voting machines themselves are never connected to the Internet. The computers that program the voting machines and tabulate the results are never connected to the Internet. And, the voting machines and the computers are kept under strict physical security with limited access between elections. All of this election equipment is owned by the county and kept by the county for use in elections. The Election Code and the Secretary of State’s office prescribe security procedures for the equipment. Those procedures include locks, tamper-evident seals, and chain of custody protocols to ensure that the equipment has not been tampered with – both between and during elections. Voting machines cannot be used until they have achieved a score of 100% on these tests. The testing of the tabulation equipment is repeated immediately prior to counting votes and immediately following the counting of ballots. The committee also heard from Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir about the STAR-Vote electronic voter system with a paper trail that allows voter verification, which Travis County is in the process of implementing.

PUBLIC EDUCATION: House Public Education Committee Recommendations on School Safety - On September 4th, the House Public Education Committee released its preliminary report on school safety. House Public Education Committee Chairman said, "As we look for ways to improve school safety, we need to find a balance between making campuses safe but also healthy learning environments. Our students deserve to have schools where they feel safe but not imprisoned. The state can assist these efforts by providing resources for more school counselors and increased student access to mental health services, in addition to campus safety improvements and increased law enforcement or school marshals. In the long run, we are better off spending resources on trying

3 to prevent such tragedies rather than just being prepared for the next one to happen.” The report recommends that the Legislature provide funding for initiatives to improve school safety including: • Increasing the number of counselors, psychologists and social workers available to students; • Increasing the amount of training received by school personnel, including threat assessment, mental health first aid and training related to emergency operations; • Studying communication interoperability among schools, law enforcement and first responders; • Improving the integration of mental health services and student access to these services, especially in underserved areas. The committee also recommended statutory changes related to school safety including: • including of mental health and character education in state curriculum guidelines and • expanding of certain existing requirements to include charter schools.

Long-Range Plan for Public Education – On September 11, the State Board of Education adopted a new Long-Range Plan for Public Education, which makes recommendations through the year 2030 in four areas of focus: EQUITY AND ACCESS - The overarching vision is for all children to get what they need to learn, thrive, and grow; for the state and for school districts to receive an equitable distribution of resources and opportunities based on individual needs such that students and schools who need more support to reach an equitable outcome, compared to their counterparts, receive what they need. The vision for 2030 in this category is: • All students will be served by effective schools that provide high-quality systems of support, both in school and out of school, which are monitored for effectiveness and designed to improve equitable outcomes for all students, especially those with the greatest needs. • All student demographic groups will be held to high expectations, supported, and enabled to reach their potential and goals, and all performance gaps will be closed. • Texas public schools will have funding that is equitably based on student needs and is efficient, sustainable, and responsible to taxpayers. • All students will be knowledgeable about and have access to a variety of pathways and opportunities linked to work, career, and educational choices. • All students and staff will have access to and utilize relevant technology to enhance student learning, academic outcomes, and opportunities for college and career readiness. • All students, particularly students who are traditionally served at low- performing schools and/or who are considered at risk, will have educators who effectively facilitate their learning, development, and success. Recommendations to achieve the vision:

4 1. Texas Education Agency (TEA), higher education, and research institutions conduct ongoing research and identification of inequities to guide effective implementation of policy decisions/systems change. 2. TEA and school districts utilize the State Board of Education–adopted 2018–2023 Long- Range Plan for Technology to guide the planning and implementation of local district policy. (See Appendix D of this plan.) 3. State policymakers, locally elected boards, and appointed governing boards regularly identify inequities, update policies, and distribute funding and resources aligned with improving student outcomes, based on quality peer-reviewed research and the experience of local educators, in all schools and with all demographic groups. 4. State policymakers and TEA provide a greater array of no-cost or low-cost resources to support high quality, aligned curriculum and instruction for all educators. 5. State policymakers, locally elected boards and appointed governing boards advance policies to increase educator and principal effectiveness through enhancing compensation systems, particularly compensation that encourages effective teachers to teach in schools not meeting state accountability goals. Enhancements should be meaningful, differentiated, sustainable, and developed in concert with local stakeholders. STUDENT ENGAGEMENT AND EMPOWERMENT - The overarching vision is for all students to be actively engaged in and equipped to be invested in their own academic and personal growth to achieve educational, civic, financial, career, and interest goals. The Vision for 2030 in this category is: • The Texas public education system will be student centered with opportunities embedded from early learning through graduation to achieve college, career, military, and workforce readiness. • The Texas public education system will ensure a myriad of meaningful in- school and extended-school-day/-week enrichment opportunities for student involvement and participation based on the needs and resources of the school district and the local community. • The Texas public education system will welcome and include student voices as integral partners in discussions and decision making. • The Texas public education system will embed teaching and learning experiences to build and foster healthy and confident individuals who embody and exhibit empathy, courage, respect, optimism, and grit. • Quality early learning programs, birth through second grade, including formula-funded full- day prekindergarten, will be fully funded, supported, and recognized as the building blocks to future academic and social success, including the goal of reading and math on grade-level by third grade. Recommendations to achieve the vision: 1. Public school districts, in collaboration with school counselors and workforce boards, create or utilize systems or frameworks such as the Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs to allow

5 students to discover passions and interests for college and career pathways from elementary school through graduation, including ongoing and systemic career advising using labor market and career information about a wide range of global occupations and ways to achieve them. 2. TEA and the Legislature financially incentivize an integrated and data- driven academic and nonacademic multitiered system of support (MTSS) on every campus to identify and connect all students with appropriate support services, including supports for behavioral health, mental health, and intrapersonal and interpersonal effectiveness. TEA and the Legislature financially incentivize an integrated workflow management system to enable the identification of students needing support, increase the effectiveness of school counselors, and monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of support services. 3. State assessment systems should be more integrated, less disruptive, and more useful to students and teachers. They should also be highly inclusive of campus level practitioners in their design. State assessment and accountability systems should seek to focus on multiple measures of assessing and reporting student performance outcomes (e.g., State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness [STAAR], career and technical education [CTE] certifications, portfolios, capstone projects, community service projects). 4. The legislature expands high-quality early learning opportunities for children from birth through grade 2, including formula-funded full-day prekindergarten, that further the goal of closing any gaps in educational proficiency by third grade. 5. School districts, community, business, education service centers, and local workforce boards actively assist teachers working with businesses and industry to gain hands-on experiences that can be incorporated into the classroom. 6. School districts provide multiple enrichment and leadership opportunities (e.g., clubs, organizations, teams, projects, internships) in addition to athletics, fine arts, and student council. 7. TEA, the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC), the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB), and the SBOE strengthen the alignment between the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) and the College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRS). 8. Students, families, educators, and school counselors ensure students take ownership of their educational journeys and personal and interpersonal effectiveness by pursuing success through active engagement with education and by taking advantage of opportunities to access business and community resources. FAMILY ENGAGEMENT AND EMPOWERMENT - The overarching vision is for all families to be actively involved in their students’ education at all levels. The Vision for 2030 in this category is: • Texas will have an education system and culture of trust that welcomes and values every family as an active partner by building relationships.

6 • All cultures that interplay with the education system will be valued and welcomed into the process for student success. • All current and future forms of communication will be fully utilized to engage, empower, and connect with all stakeholders. • The state and school districts will have systems and resources in place to engage, empower, and support families as they navigate through the complex educational process. Recommendations to achieve the vision: 1. TEA create a division of family engagement and empowerment that is a resource for families. Through this division, TEA will: create a family support call center and online portal to be managed by an education service center to assist families in navigating the public school system; and create an advisory council on family engagement and empowerment to inform all state and local policymakers on best practices on family and school partnerships and develop objective metrics that could be included in a state accountability system. 2. State policymakers and TEA incorporate objective family engagement and empowerment metrics that are incentivized and rewarded in the state accountability system. 3. In partnerships with families, school districts and communities (e.g., institutions of higher education, businesses) build and foster relationships, address differences, and support advocacy. EDUCATOR PREPARATION, RECRUITMENT, AND RETENTION - The overarching vision is for all Texas students to be served by a consistent and abundant talent pool of highly effective teachers and leaders who positively impact students and student learning. The Vision for 2030 in this category is: • Texas will have educator preparation programs that produce an abundant talent pool of highly effective educators who have mastered the content and pedagogy needed to teach the Texas Essential Knowledge & Skills (TEKS) at the level those expectations are written. • Texas educators will be well equipped and trained to meet the diverse needs of the classroom environment. • Texas will have an effective support system for educators that builds instructional capacity through ongoing, quality professional development and mentoring programs. • The teaching profession will be valued and esteemed by the public, families, students, and policymakers. • Texas will have a compensation system that facilitates the recruitment and retention of high- quality educators. • Educators will have opportunities to advance their careers while directly impacting the classroom, including increased compensation and leadership opportunities, based on their effectiveness, aspirational goals, and challenging school environment.

7 • Texas will have effective and empowering educator and administrator evaluation systems that reward student achievement, assure educator growth, and promote career paths. • Every campus will have effective leadership utilizing high-quality instructional leadership and human capital and resource management. • Every district/charter school will have highly effective executive leadership and governing boards focused on improving student outcomes. Recommendations to achieve the vision: 1. Educator Preparation Programs (EPPs) collaborate and partner with school districts to better align training and practicums to best meet student needs and improve student outcomes. 2. EPPs include educator and education leadership training on trauma- informed practices, cultural responsiveness, the incorporation of social and personal effectiveness practices, the creation of a positive school culture and climate, the education of highly mobile students, positive discipline practices, mental and behavioral health interventions, parental involvement strategies, and data analysis and data-informed decision- making. 3. State policymakers and educators increase overall teacher quality by improving the standards and rigor associated with educator preparation and the state’s Educator Preparation Programs (EPPs). 4. TEA has meaningful performance-based accountability processes, standards, and measurable outcomes for educator preparation programs that ensure new/entry-level educators are classroom-/school-ready. 5. Education service centers and institutions of higher education provide just- in-time guidance, training, mentoring, and support for educators and support for new, early career, and veteran teachers. 6. The Legislature and school districts establish and sustain competitive salaries and career paths for educators through innovative compensation plans, induction programs, professional development, mentoring, and administration. 7. The Legislature allows and supports compensating and incentivizing educators who teach in hard-to-staff subject areas or low-performing, urban, rural, or challenging schools. 8. TEA, the Legislature, school districts, professional associations, and industry partners provide incentives and support for teachers to engage in internships, externships, leadership opportunities, and ongoing professional development as part of continuing education. 9. The Legislature and institutions of higher education provide greater flexibility in a coordinated fashion to state higher education institutions regarding the 120-hour degree plan for teacher education programs while maintaining the rigor and integrity of these programs. Long Range Plan for Technology - Also in September, the State Board of Education released a new 2018-2023 Long-Range Plan for Technology, which is intended to be a visionary guide to inform and influence local education agencies in developing their own technology plan. The plan includes six strategic goals

8 1. Personalized, Flexible, Empowered Learning - Adaptive and individualized learning based on student needs and abilities. 2. Equitable Access - Fair and equal opportunities for all students to take full advantage of their education. 3. Digital Citizenship - Responsible, safe, respectful, and legal use of technology. 4. Safety and Security - Environment free of physical, emotional, and digital harm or risk. 5. Collaborative Leadership - Consensus-oriented decision making by multiple stakeholders to achieve shared goals. 6. Reliable Infrastructure - Available, trusted technology components to support organizational goals.

TAX: Senate Select Committee on Property Tax Reform – On September 20, heard testimony regarding 3 interim charges regarding enhancing voter engagement in the property tax process, examining available data, and evaluating the process of Appraisal Review Board operations. To open the hearing Chairman Paul Bettencourt said, "Property tax relief is urgent and a necessity for all Texas taxpayers. This all boils down to a simple equation of Aggie math: As property values go up property tax rates must come down." Senator Van Taylor added, "I am shocked to find out total Texas property tax burden went from $52 billion to $60 billion in two years. This has to stop." Senator Kelly Hancock also weighed in saying, "My constituents in an overwhelming number tell me - do something about this. I get that there are some people doing things right, but unfortunately not everyone is and that is why we are looking at legislation this session." Chairman Bettencourt noted that property tax reform has been designated preliminarily as SB 2, by Lt. Governor Patrick in the upcoming 86th Legislative Session, with school safety legislation designated as SB 1. Voter Engagement in Local Government Decisions - Study and recommend ways to enhance voter engagement in local government decisions around budgets and property tax rates through digital media and social media. Determine how budget and tax rate information should be formatted for effective communication through digital and social media. Identify the ways in which digital and social media present new opportunities for voters to give feedback to local governments. Identify best practices among local governments in Texas and in other states. On the voter engagement charge, the committee heard from representatives of the Cities of Round Rock, , Arlington, Plano Balcones Heights, College Station, and McKinney; Texans for Freedom, Texas Public Policy Foundation, the McNair Center at Rice University; and the Republican Party of Texas. Property Tax Data - Evaluate whether existing libraries of property tax data and collection methods are adequate for studying local property tax outcomes and identifying drivers of growing property tax levies. Determine the scope of existing data, where it is stored, and how it is made available to the public. Determine whether existing, available data is adequate for the needs of the legislature and

9 the public. Review existing procedures for the collection and verification of data. Receive recommendations from the comptroller regarding the collection, verification, and publication of property tax data. Texas Taxpayers & Research Association President Dale Craymer made recommendations related to the property tax data issue: • Require data on all taxing jurisdictions to be reported to the Comptroller (current law applies only to city, county, and school district taxes). • The comptroller or appropriate state agency should be given the resources and the authority to verify the property tax data submitted to it. Appraisal Reform - Evaluate the operations of appraisal review boards (ARBs), specifically the training and expertise of members concerning appraisal standards and law, ethics, and meeting procedures. Determine whether ARB operations are sufficiently independent of central appraisal districts and taxing units and whether ARBs and/or chief appraisers should be elected. Texas Taxpayers & Research Association President Dale Craymer made recommendations related to tax rate and appraisal reform: • The current “property tax estimate” included as part of the Notice of Appraisal should be replaced with a web-based “real time tax notice.” The real-time tax notice would inform a property owner, once his/her final value was established, how the proposed tax rates of local taxing units would directly impact their property tax bill. • All taxing units should be required to maintain a webpage providing basic tax and budget information, as well as contact information for the members of the governing board. That information should be presented in a standardized format, as determined by law or administrative rule. The Conservative Texas Budget Coalition – On September 25, the Conservative Texas Budget Coalition announced its top priorities for the 86th Session including: 1. Pass a 2020-21 Conservative Texas Budget - $234.1 billion in All Funds $156.5 in State Funds Based on an increase in population growth and inflation for 2017-18. 2. Approve Conservative Spending Limits - Require state & local government spending growth to be no more than population growth and inflation for last two fiscal years. 3. Provide Local Property Tax Relief - Set automatic local rollback trigger rate at 2.5% and use state dollars to eliminate school maintenance and operations property taxes. 4. Abolish the Business Margins Tax - Increase investment and jobs by eliminating this onerous business tax. 5. Adopt Tax Relief Fund – Reduce the state’s budget while returning dollars through tax relief. 6. Secure Budget Transparency & Accountability - Adopt program-based budgeting along with zero-based budgeting and promote efficiency audits to eliminate government waste. The Conservative Texas Budget Coalition includes the following organizations: • Americans for Prosperity-Texas

10 • Americans for Tax Reform • Citizens Against Government Waste • Grassroots America - We the People • Heartland Institute • Heritage Alliance • Institute for Policy Innovation • Lone Star Policy Institute • National Taxpayers Union • Our America Initiative *R Street Institute • Reason Foundation • State Budget Solutions • Texans for Fiscal Responsibility • Texans 4 Truth • Texas Eagle Forum • Texas Public Policy Foundation • Young Conservatives of Texas

WORKFORCE: Jobs and Education for Texans Grant Program – On September 12, Governor Abbott appointed Gerardo Interiano to the Jobs & Education for Texans Grant Program Advisory Board for a term set to expire on June 19, 2019. The board provides assistance to the Texas Workforce Commission in awarding grant funds associated with the development of new career and technical education programs at public junior colleges, public technical institutes, and independent school districts.

State Websites - Additional information can be obtained via the Senate, House, and capitol websites: www.senate.state.tx.us www.house.state.tx.us www.capitol.state.tx.us

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