Politics Watch: Variety of Education Bills Fail as Fourth Special Session Concludes
TL/DR –
The fourth special session of the North Texas legislature ended without passing a number of education bills, including controversial ones such as taxpayer subsidies for private school students. Two controversial immigration bills did pass, including one making it a state crime for a migrant to enter Texas illegally. State Rep. Frederick Frazier pleaded no contest to misdemeanor criminal charges related to a previous primary campaign, and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick defended the state against accusations of underfunding public education.
NORTH TEXAS — Fourth Special Session Ends
The fourth special session in North Texas concluded with multiple education bills abandoned. State Rep. Frederick Frazier is facing misdemeanor criminal charges related to a previous primary campaign. At the same time, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is contesting accusations from Democrats and school districts about the state under-funding public education.
These issues and more are covered in this week’s edition of Eye on Politics (original air date: Dec. 7).
CBS News Texas political reporter Jack Fink presents the most significant political stories in North Texas. Watch new episodes live every Thursday and Friday at 6 p.m. on CBS News Texas.
Education Bills Dead in Fourth special session
Among the discarded education bills is taxpayer subsidies for students to attend private school or education savings accounts (ESAs). Although Senate Bill 2 providing raises for public school teachers and additional school district funding were passed by the Senate, they remained unconsidered in the House for weeks. Consequently, Gov. Greg Abbott’s Communications Director expressed determination to continue the fight for school choice for Texas families.
Immigration Bills Passed During Fourth Special Session
Despite the setbacks, two controversial border security bills were passed during the fourth special session. Senate Bill 3 will enable the state to spend an additional $1.5 billion and Senate Bill 4 will criminalize illegal migration into Texas.
Democratic North Texas Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett and fellow Democrats have written to Attorney General Merrick Garland, raising concerns over potential civil rights violations at the border by Governor Abbott’s Operation Lone Star.
State Representative No Contest to Misdemeanor Charges
State Representative Frederick Frazier, who is also a Dallas police officer, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges related to his previous primary campaign. View the full details in this video report.
First Latina Judge Confirmed
The U.S. Senate confirmed the first Latina judge, Irma Carrillo Ramirez, who has served as a federal magistrate judge in Dallas for over two decades, for the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.
Texas GOP Committee Rejects Proposed Ban on Associating with Nazi Sympathizers
A decision by the Texas GOP executive committee to reject a proposed ban on associating with Nazi sympathizers and Holocaust deniers has attracted criticism. Despite this, resolutions condemning antisemitism and supporting Israel were passed unanimously.
Lt. Gov. Pushes Back Against Underfunding Accusations
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is pushing back against accusations from Democrats and school districts of state underfunding in public education. Find out more in our exclusive interview with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.
Author
Jack Fink covers politics for KTVT-TV CBS 11 and has been part of the station since September 2003.
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