Austin, TX
School choice coming to Texas? | Texas: The Issue Is
School choice, Dept. of Education cuts
In this week’s Texas: The Issue Is, FOX 7’s Rudy Koski talks to a supporter of school choice legislation about the bills moving through the Texas Legislature and what it means for both public and private schools. Then FOX 26’s Greg Groogan discusses the impact of cuts to the US Department of Education.
AUSTIN – Leaders of the Texas House are facing a very big decision after last week’s pressure-packed school choice rally and a marathon committee hearing on House Bill 3.
House Bill 3 is the House’s version of school choice. The bill is slightly different from Senate Bill 2, which passed last month.
In order for any bill to reach the governor’s desk, a backroom compromise will be needed.
School choice advocate on bills in Texas Legislature
What they’re saying:
FOX 7’s Rudy Koski sat down with Mandy Drogin, the campaign director of Next Generation Texas at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, to discuss school choice.
Drogin: “It’s critical that all lawmakers realize that we can empower parents to make the best decision for their child and love their child and know where they should be going to school and empower them to make that choice.”
Koski: “Is this a punt on public education?”
Drogin: “Absolutely not. I’m a public school parent myself. We have to acknowledge that there are 50% of the children in our classroom right now that cannot read on grade level. And that’s been going on for over a decade […] This is not in any way saying that public schools should not be fully funded and lifted up. It means that every single parent should be in charge, and that a one-size-fits-all system based simply on the street that you live on, does not serve every child.”
Koski: “This current plan isn’t every parent. It really isn’t universal. The only universal part is the application process, not the selection process.”
Drogin: “The eligibility.”
Koski: “So a very limited number of people who are actually going to benefit from this program.”
Drogin: “I wouldn’t say it’s limited. 100,000 children will have access.”
Koski: “Of five million children.”
Drogin: “So let’s be clear. We can do both. We can say what we want to do and then HB 2 has about 8 billion more dollars. We are going to spend more than $100 billion.”
Koski: “Opponents will say that’s just a buy down. That’s buying down the tax rate, and it’s really not giving new money.”
Drogin: “Well, that is completely incorrect. There are two different pieces of legislation.”
Koski: “So, is it a labeling problem that the people are missing here?
Drogin: “It’s not a labeling problem. It’s not a voucher, which is what opposition likes to use. No. An education savings account allows parents to truly customize their child’s education […] it’s not a scholarship. […] There is not going to be a mass exodus from our public school system. So claiming that it’s not truly universal is false. Eligibility, every single child in the state of Texas is eligible. Now, the appropriation is what you’re talking about. There is $1 billion appropriated this year. That would be enough for approximately 100,000 students whose families needed another choice. And then there’s the prioritization. As we’ve heard in the committee, it is prioritized for low and middle-income families as well as our special education students.”
Koski: “Is the plan to come back later and create more money and is that contingent on the surplus?”
Drogin: “At this moment? Yeah, absolutely. It’s contingent on demand.”
You can watch ‘Texas: The Issue Is’ Sundays on your local FOX station or on the free FOX LOCAL app.
The Source: Information in this article comes from FOX 7’s Rudy Koski’s sitdown with Mandy Drogin of the Texas Public Policy Foundation and a House hearing on school choice legislation on Tuesday, March 11.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — As flood threats continue across parts of South Central Texas, Austin Pets Alive! has activated emergency response efforts to support animal shelters affected by the inclement weather.
In a social media post, APA! wrote, “We began offering aid last night, working to secure fosters for 10 dogs in the Castroville shelter, an open-air shelter that sits at the bottom of a valley.”
APA! said the situation escalated overnight with additional shelters reporting flooding. One shelter confirmed that floodwaters reached its facility, APA! added.
Communities overwhelmed due to weather include Uvalde, Castroville and Sabinal.
The nonprofit is asking the Austin community to foster, adopt or donate to free up capacity for animals displaced by the disaster. APA! needs to clear out its facilities to assist the animals in need of shelter.
Here are ways you can help:
- Adopt: APA! is offering a “Name Your Own Adoption Fee” on all animals.
- Foster: The shelter is seeking foster homes for a minimum of three weeks.
- Donate: Proceeds will fund vans and response teams setting up a staging and triage center at the heart of the disaster zone, along with an expanded stockpile of preventatives, PPE and additional supplies.
If you would like to donate, click here.
AUSTIN, Texas — With heavy rain expected across parts of Central Texas this week and flooding top of mind, the city of Austin is proposing to put more money toward flood mitigation improvements in next year’s budget.
The proposal would invest in new flood infrastructure, add staff, and help move flood mitigation projects forward, according to city leaders. Austin City Councilmember Ryan Alter said the investments are aimed at keeping the city prepared for future flooding.
Residents who live near waterways say they have seen how quickly conditions can change. David Haderspeck, who lives near Shoal Creek, said the creek “fills up pretty fast” and “gets a lot higher than you’d expect.” He said he has watched the water rise dramatically after rain.
“I’ve seen it come up probably 10 to 15 feet to the ordinary high-water mark,” he said.
This week, parts of Central Texas, including the Hill Country, are expected to get heavy downpours. While Austin is not expecting the same impacts as parts of the Hill Country, leaders said the city is using this year’s budget planning to continue investing in flood safety.
Alter said the city has the expertise to address flooding risks but needs to follow through on projects.
ALSO| Central Texas urged to prepare as heavy rainfall sits in forecast over next two days
“We have the experts. We just have to put the plans into practice, and that’s what we’re doing in this budget,” he said.
Under the budget proposal, the city would provide about $134.5 million for the Drainage Utility Fund, which helps pay for flood mitigation, drainage infrastructure and watershed protection efforts.
Alter said the proposal would shift more of the funding balance toward building new infrastructure.
“What we’re going to do is shift that balance a little bit more to building new infrastructure so that when we do have large flooding events, we’ve got that infrastructure in place to keep people safe,” he said.
The proposal also adds staff and invests in both new and existing flood mitigation projects across the city.
Asked whether the proposed investments would be enough moving forward, Alter said, “I do…I think we’re doing the right thing and just making sure that our residents have the infrastructure to stay safe.”
Alter said heavy rain cannot be prevented, but the city’s goal is to have infrastructure in place to help keep people safe when it happens.
FILE – LinkedIn logos are displayed on an iPhone and computer screen. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, Texas – The Texas Attorney General’s office has opened an investigation into LinkedIn over allegations that the professional networking platform misleads consumers with advertising and profiting from misleading or fake job listings, otherwise known as “ghost jobs.”
LinkedIn investigation
In this photo illustration a Linkedin logo seen displayed on a mobile phone. (Photo Illustration by Stanislav Kogiku/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
What we know:
Texas announced on Tuesday it has issued a Civil Investigative Demand (CID) seeking documents, data and internal communications related to LinkedIn’s advertising, marketing, job listing verification practices and its Premium subscription services.
The investigation centers on whether LinkedIn violated Texas’ consumer protection laws by promoting paid subscription services while allegedly failing to disclose that some job listings on the platform may not actually be representative of hiring opportunities.
What is a ‘ghost job’?
An image of a woman holding a cell phone in front of a LinkedIn logo displayed on a computer screen. On Tuesday, January 12, 2021, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Dig deeper:
LinkedIn is owned by Microsoft and the world’s largest professional networking platform, with more than 1 billion registered users worldwide.
A “ghost job” generally refers to a position advertised online that either is no longer available or that an employer has no immediate intention of filling. The attorney general’s office cited independent studies estimating that ghost jobs account for between one-fifth and one-third of online job postings.
Texas AG targets Premium Subscription Fees
Photographer: Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images
What they’re saying:
According to the office of the attorney general, LinkedIn does not independently verify the hiring status of most job listings on its platform. Ken Paxton’s office alleges that the company’s marketing for its Premium subscription services does not disclose that a significant number of postings could be inactive, unfilled or not reflect genuine employment opportunity.
“I will use every resource available to my office to help job-seeking Texans find and secure real employment opportunities,” Paxton said in a statement. “LinkedIn has a duty to provide the services it advertises and ensure that consumers paying for Premium subscriptions are receiving access to legitimate job postings.”
Texas officials said LinkedIn’s Premium Career and Premium Business subscriptions cost about $39.99 and $69.99 per month, respectively, and are marketed to jobseekers looking to improve their employment prospects.
What’s next:
The investigation does not include any formal allegations of wrongdoing, and no lawsuit has been filed.
The Source: Information in this article was provided by the Texas Attorney General’s Office.
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