"Co-authored: HB1252 (Related to the limitation period for filing a complaint and requesting a special education impartial due process hearing). Co-Authored: HB129 (Requiring a one-credit digital citizenship course). Authored: HB1744 (Preparing education students to teach bilingual, ESL, or Spanish). Co-Authored: HB2287 (data collection/receipt of reports by and consultation with the Collaborative Task Force on Public School Mental Health Services). Co-Authored: HB2554 (related to the operation by a school district of a vocational education program to provide eligible high school students with vocational and educational training under a graduation plan and the application of certain student-based allotments under the public school finance system). Co-Authored: HB2954 (Suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention grant program for public elementary schools). Authored: HB2975 (Prohibiting physical restraint or use of chemical irritants on public school students by peace officers and school security). Co-authored: HB764 (Reducing STAAR testing for public school students). Voted yes - HB1080 (participation in UIL for students who receive mental health services). Voted yes - HB1133 (Relating to an election to revoke a county equalization tax imposed in certain counties). Voted yes - HB1252 (Related to the limitation period for filing a complaint and requesting a special education impartial due process hearing). Voted yes - HB1468 (Public school remote learning programs). Voted yes - HB1525 (HB3 cleanup bill). Absent for vote - HB159 (Training for all educators on how to better serve disabled students). Voted yes - HB1603 (Ends sunset dates for IGCs). Not voting - HB189 (Relates to severance payments to a superintendent or administrator in an open-enrollment charter school). Voted yes - HB2256 (Creates a bilingual sped program for students with disabilities). Voted yes - HB2287 (Relating to data collection and receipt of certain reports by and consultation with the Collaborative Task Force on Public School Mental Health Services). Voted yes - HB2519 (Composition of SBEC, issuance of sanctions by the board, requiring a school district to notify a teacher regarding the submission of complaints to SBEC). Voted yes - HB2681 (Elective courses on the study of the Bible offered to public school students). Did not vote - HB2721 (Prohibiting a student from participating in future extracurricular activities for certain conduct involving the assault of an extracurricular activity official). Voted yes - HB2802 (Administration of certain public school assessments and the temporary suspension of accountability during a school year in which public school operations are disrupted as a result of a declared disaster and the requirement to use those instruments for promotion or graduation). Absent for vote - HB3261 (Electronic administration of tests, measures to support internet connectivity for purposes of the test, the adoption and administration of optional interim tests, the review and use of the instructional materials and technology allotment, and requests for production of instructional materials). Did not vote - HB3456 (Inclusion of funds received by certain educational institutions or programs in foundation school program funds for purposes of certain budget reductions). Did not vote - HB3489 (Development of guidelines for the use of digital devices in public schools and a school district or open enrollment charter school policy for the effective integration of those devices). Did not vote - HB3597 (Relating to policies, procedures, and measures for school safety in public schools). Voted yes - HB3643 (Creates a Texas Commission on Virtual Education). Voted no - HB3731 (Relating to public school accountability ratings, including interventions and sanctions administered to a school district, open-enrollment charter school, or district or school campus assigned an unacceptable performance rating. (HISD takeover bill)). Did not vote - HB 3932 (Relating to the establishment of the State Advisory Council on Educational Opportunity for Military Children). Voted no - HB3979 (critical race theory bill #1). Did not vote - HB41 (Relating to class size limits for prekindergarten classes provided by or on behalf of public schools). Voted yes - HB41 (Relating to class size limits for prekindergarten classes provided by or on behalf of public schools). Did not vote - HB4124 (Relating to student enrollment in certain special-purpose districts and the allotment under the public school finance system for those districts). Did not vote - HB4509 (Relating to instruction on informed American patriotism in public schools and study of the Founding documents of Texas and the United States). Voted no - HB4545 (Relating to the assessment of public school students, the establishment of a strong Foundations grant program, and providing accelerated instruction for students who fail to achieve satisfactory performance on certain assessment instruments. (Bill used to include increasing commissioner powers, now just is about tutoring). Voted yes - HB547 (Would allow homeschooled students to participate in UIL activities on public school campuses). Voted yes - HB572 (Relating to the inclusion of students enrolled in a dropout recovery school as students at risk of dropping out of school for purposes of compensatory, intensive, and accelerated instruction and to a study by the Texas Education Agency on competency-based educational programs). Voted yes - HB690 (Relating to training requirements for a member of the board of trustees of an independent school district). Voted yes - HB699 (Relating to public school attendance requirements for students diagnosed with or undergoing related treatment for severe or life-threatening illnesses). Voted yes - HB725 (Relating to the eligibility of certain children who are or were in foster care for free prekindergarten programs in public schools). Did not vote - HB750 (Relating to requiring a school district to post the district's employment policy on the district's Internet website). Voted yes - HB764 (Reducing STAAR testing for public school students). Voted yes - HB773 (Includes CTE students as a student achievement subpop for accountability). Voted yes - HB785 (Relating to behavior improvement plans and behavioral intervention plans for certain public school students and notification and documentation requirements regarding certain behavior management techniques). Voted yes - HB999 (Exempts kids from testing requirements for 2021, allows IGCs for all 5 tests rather than 3). Did not vote - SB1063 (Relating to courses in personal financial literacy & economics for high school students in public schools). Did not vote - SB1095 (Relating to notice regarding the availability to public school students of college credit and work-based education programs and subsidies for fees paid to take certain advanced placement tests. (Let students know these programs exist)). Did not vote - SB1109 (Relating to requiring public schools to provide instruction and materials and adopt policies relating to the prevention of child abuse, family violence, and dating violence). Did not vote - SB123 (Relating to instruction in positive character traits and personal skills in public schools). Voted yes - SB1267 (Relating to continuing education and training requirements for educators and other school district personnel). Did not vote - SB1351 (Relating to the donation of food by public school campuses). Voted yes - SB1356 (Relating to the participation by members of nonprofit teacher organizations in a tutoring program for public school students and related retirement benefits for certain tutors participating in the program). Voted yes - SB1365 (Relating to public school organization, accountability, and fiscal management. (HISD takeover bill)). Voted yes - SB1590 (Relating to rules by the State Board for Educator Certification regarding virtual observation options for field-based experiences and internships required for educator certification). Did not vote - SB168 (Relating to emergency school drills and exercises conducted by public schools). Voted yes - SB1696 (Relating to establishing a system for the sharing of information regarding cyber attacks or other cybersecurity incidents occurring in schools in this state). Voted yes - SB1697 (Relating to allowing parents and guardians to elect for a student to repeat or retake a course or grade). Voted yes - SB1716 (Relating to a supplemental special education services and instructional materials program for certain public school students receiving special education services). Voted yes - SB179 (Relating to the use of public school counselors' work time). Voted yes - SB1831 (Relating to the punishment for trafficking of persons, online solicitation of a minor, and prostitution and to the dissemination of certain information, including the required printing of certain signs, regarding human trafficking; increasing criminal penalties; providing a civil penalty). Voted yes - SB1955 (Relating to exempting learning pods from certain local government regulations). Voted yes - SB2050 (Relating to bullying and cyberbullying in public schools). Did not vote - SB2066 (Relating to emergent bilingual students in public schools). Voted yes - SB2081 (Relating to class size limits for prekindergarten classes provided by or on behalf of public schools). Did not vote - SB226 (Relating to instruction in educator training programs regarding digital learning, virtual learning, and virtual instruction). Did not vote - SB279 (Relating to the inclusion of suicide prevention information on certain student ID cards issued by a public school or public institution of higher education). Did not vote - SB289 (Relating to excused absences from public school for certain students to obtain a driver's license or learner license). Voted yes - SB338 (Relating to the adoption of uniform general conditions for building construction projects entered into by school districts and the composition of the committee that reviews uniform general conditions). Absent for vote - SB348 (Related to parent access to public school virtual instruction and instructional materials for virtual and remote learning). Did not vote - SB369 (Requiring students to submit a FAFSA application as a condition for graduation). Did not vote - SB462 (Relating to funding under the transportation allotment for transporting meals and instructional materials to students during a declared disaster). Voted yes - SB481 (Relating to the transfer of certain public school students to a school district offering in person instruction). Voted yes - SB560 (Relating to developing a strategic plan for the improvement and expansion of high-quality bilingual education.). Did not vote - SB746 (Relating to requiring the parent of a student enrolled in a school district to provide and update a parent's contact information). Voted yes - SB776 (Relating to the creation of an inclusive sports program by the University Interscholastic League to provide students with intellectual disabilities access to team sports). Voted yes - SB797 (Relating to the display of the national motto in public schools and institutes of higher education). Did not vote - SB801 (Relating to the development of an agriculture education program for public elementary schools). Voted yes - SB1776 (Relating to the inclusion of an elective course on the founding principles of the United States in the curriculum for public high school students and the posting of the founding documents of the United States in public school buildings). SPECIAL SESSION 2: Voted no - SB3 (Relating to civics training programs for certain public school social studies teachers and principals, parental access to certain learning management systems, and certain curriculum in public schools, including certain instructional requirements and prohibitions). Voted yes - SJR2 (Proposing a constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to provide for the reduction of the amount of a limitation on the total amount of ad valorem taxes that may be imposed for general elementary and secondary public school purposes on the residence homestead of a person who is elderly or disabled to reflect any statutory reduction from the preceding tax year in the maximum compressed rate of the maintenance and operations taxes imposed for those purposes on the homestead). SPECIAL SESSION 3: Voted yes - SB1 (Relating to an increase in the amount of the exemption of residence homesteads from ad valorem taxation by a school district and the protection of school districts against the resulting loss in local revenue). Voted yes - SJR2 (Proposing a constitutional amendment increasing the amount of the residence homestead exemption from ad valorem taxation for public school purposes). Voted yes - HB160 (Relating to making supplemental appropriations for education initiatives, institutions, and related agencies and giving direction regarding appropriations). Voted no - HB25 (Relating to requiring public school students to compete in interscholastic athletic competitions based on biological sex).
" Information: elected and served 2009-2011, re-elected in 2013 and has served since. Voting record: for reduced testing. For 149. for increase PK funding. For PK class caps. Against home rule charter. For increased PubEd funding. Against vouchers. For shoring up TRS. For ASDs following PubEd rules. For class caps on ASDs. 2017 Update: voted for HB 1776 (remove US history and promotion requirements from STAAR); voted for HB 21 (Huberty School Finance). 2019 session: Speaker Pro Tem, Texas House. Authored legislation: HB142 - relating to a notice of educational rights and recovery by school districts and open-enrollment charter schools of costs for certain student evaluations.Voted yes - HB3. Voted yes - HB18 (student mental health services). Voted yes - HB102 (mentor teachers). Voted yes - HB953 (TRS contributions). Voted yes - SB12 (TRS contributions). Voted yes - SB29 (taxpayer funded lobbying). Grade from Project Educo: A
2025
Voted AGAINST Vouchers (SB 2)
Voted for the amendment to remove vouchers from HB 1 making it purely a school finance bill (special session 4 - 2023)
Voted FOR the Herrero amendment to prohibit money from HB1 to be used to fund vouchers/ESAs (regular session 2023)
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