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Parker discusses education at town hall meeting
By Chris Roark, roark@acnpapers.com
State Rep. Tan Parker (R-Flower Mound) updated residents Wednesday on a variety of issues that impact those close to home and statewide.
Parker hosted a town hall meeting at the Flower Mound Public Library in which he gave a recap of the 82nd Texas Legislature, discussing the challenges legislators faced, as well as the accomplishments made by lawmakers and by Parker himself.
These came despite the state having a $15 billion shortfall entering the session, all while lawmakers had to balance the budget since the state cannot debt spend. Lawmakers shaved $15 billion off the budget without raising taxes.
Parker said there were some mixed results in terms of kindergarten through 12th-grade education.
On one hand, the state is spending $125 million more than the last budget from a dollar-to-dollar perspective.
On the other hand, factoring in student growth, Texas is spending $4 billion less, or 5.6 percent, per student compared to the last budget.
Parker points out that the 5.6-percent decrease is on the lower end of department reductions. He said other portions of the budget received an average of an 8.1-percent slice in funding, including office of the governor (18.5 percent), legislative offices (13.2 percent) and Commission on the Arts (52.7 percent).
Several members of the audience asked Parker about the future of education funding. Brenda Latham, a member of the Lewisville ISD Board of Trustees, asked what efforts are being made to re-write the formula in which money is dispersed among the school districts in the state.
Right now, the complex formula consists of several factors, including a frozen target revenue that does not take into account recent student growth. The formula also no longer gives districts the extra money generated from property taxes.
"I think this next session will be a school finance session," Parker said. "We'll have to tackle the formula and how the model was created in the very beginning from the ground up. The real question we had last session was, do we touch the formula? But the reality was that we were up against the clock. We didn't have that ability in the special session. We had already gotten through the budget, and we had gotten through redistricting. Then we came down to the final day of a special session to pass the budget that we had."
Parker also said the Public Education Committee, including Reps. Rob Eissler and Scott Hochberg, will host hearings to look into these issues.
Resident Bryan Webb continued the discussion by addressing the community meetings LISD has hosted and the dismal financial outlook districts will likely face next year, according to Dr. Stephen Waddell, LISD superintendent.
"Would you take back to Austin next session that we allow our locally-elected school boards greater latitude to make decisions for our schools and students," Webb said. "I think it goes hand-in-hand with reduced funding to allow schools to have flexibility to achieve what they need to."
Parker said he fully supports that idea and that he will continue to fight for local control. But he said one of the issues during the past session was a battle -- not between Republicans and Democrats -- but between teacher unions that didn't want the local control and the superintendents who did.
"I felt passionately that you have to have more local control if you're going to effectively run a school district," Parker said.
Transportation
Parker discussed two major road projects in the area, beginning with the future expansion of Interstate-35E from I-635 north to Hwy. 380.
The project will feature the addition of one toll road, one free lane and one free frontage road, all in each direction.
Parker said because of legislation that was passed, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) will issue a request for proposal (RFP) for a public/private partner to help fund the project that is expected to cost more than $5 billion. Parker said the RFP is expected to be released late this year or early next year.
"A lot of the environmental and assessment work has already taken place," Parker said. "So I think within the next two to three years, you're going to see this project well underway and within five years probably see this project nearing completion."
Parker said Denton County is using about $7 million from the Highway 121 toll way project, as well as money from a private entity.
Parker also discussed the future of FM 1171. He said the planning is underway for Phases II and III but said right-of-way purchases often holds up the process. Phase II will feature the expansion to six lanes from Shiloh Road to Hwy. 377, and Phase III will increase the road to six lanes from Hwy. 377 to I-35W.
Flower Mound Mayor Melissa Northern, who was in the audience, said TxDot is negotiating the last right-of-way purchase and that the project should begin in the first quarter of 2012.
Gas drilling
Parker addressed several bills that were passed that deal with gas drilling.
Parker joint-authored Senate Bill 527, which funds up to 20 additional air quality monitoring stations in the Barnett Shale. Parker joint-authored House Bill 3328, which requires gas companies to disclose the contents of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, fluid.
Other accomplishments
Lawmakers passed legislation that requires voters to bring a photo ID to a voting location, though there are exemptions for disabled residents, those with religious objections and those who just endured a natural disaster.
Legislation was passed that requires doctors to share images of a sonogram with the woman prior to an abortion procedure taking place.
Tort reform was accomplished with a new law that requires a plaintiff to pay the defendant's legal fees if the judge determines the lawsuit is without merit.
And eminent domain was limited to public use. Before implementing the practice, government entities must first make a good-faith offer for the property. Under certain conditions, those property owners will be allowed to repurchase the property 10 years later.
A new law reauthorized the $1 million small business exemption to a franchise tax.
And legislation allows properly-licensed people to keep concealed handguns in their vehicles while at work.
Parker accomplishments
Parker also touched on several of the bills he personally passed, including those dealing with child safety.
HB 434 gives required guidance to daycare facilities to protect special needs students. HB 807 requires Child Protective Services to give 48 hours notice before moving foster children from their home. HB 2367 establishes an advisory panel to study child custody laws in Texas. HB 240 requires that septic tank lids are childproof. This comes after an incident in 2009 in Argyle when a tank lid popped off and a 2-year-old fell into the tank, where she drowned.
Also, Parker passed three bills to help improve boater safety on area lakes.
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Right now, the complex formula consists of several factors, including a frozen target revenue that does not take into account recent student growth. The formula also no longer gives districts the extra money generated from property taxes."
How about we go back to local funding of school districts? Get the state and federal government out of education and income re-distribution. "