August 8, 2017      2:52 PM

KR: Senate throws down marker on education as House renews push for ASATR fix

Chair Taylor says “Some people’s idea of reform is to merely spend more money in education”; meantime if one of Ken King’s ASATR bills is on the floor by Thursday it could be in play

Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, talked about trading up to a “new car” today in a news conference on education with the Senate Republican Caucus, saying the time had come to trade in the clunker that was the state’s 30-year-old school finance funding formula.

“Our message is loud and clear,” the Senate Education Committee Chairman said. “We want substantial, meaningful education reform and we want it now. The time for tinkering around the edges and applying another Band Aid is over. We have a broken system and suggest proposals to add one-time money to this system are political campaign gimmicks, not long-term solutions.”

Some would consider Taylor’s words to be a response to House Public Education Chairman Dan Huberty’s repeated statements that he was not interested in a school finance commission. Or, from the more cynical point of view, it’s the Senate’s way of trying to steal the limelight from the House as senators cool their heels, waiting to return to the floor on Thursday.

Education observers, though, translated the Senate speak another way: vouchers, vouchers and more vouchers.

By Kimberly Reeves

Copyright August 08, 2017, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved