By Texas House Speaker's Office
Austin, TX – Reps. Kent Grusendorf and Talmadge Heflin will head the working groups House Speaker Tom Craddick appointed Wednesday to work with senators on public education and revenue reforms.
Grusendorf, R-Arlington, is chairman of the House Public Education Committee and chaired the House Select Committee on Public School Finance. He will head the House working group on education reforms.
Heflin, House Appropriations Committee chairman, will head the working group on revenue reforms. Heflin, R-Houston, is also a member of the Select Committee on Public School Finance, as are the 10 other members of the House working groups.
The education panel will also include Reps. Dianne White Delisi, R-Temple, Helen Giddings, D-Dallas, Bob E. Griggs, R-North Richland Hills, Carl Isett, R-Lubbock, and Rene Oliveira, D-Brownsville.
Griggs is a retired school superintendent.
The revenue panel will include Reps. Fred Hill, R-Richardson, Jim Keffer, R-Eastland, Vilma Luna, D-Corpus Christi, Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, and Allan Ritter, D-Nederland.
Craddick said that, because the working groups' responsibilities are so intertwined, Grusendorf and Heflin will float between both panels.
"The working groups represent a good cross-section of members," said Craddick, R-Midland. "It is important to build on what the select committee has already done, and not start over again from square 1.
"House Bill 1 produced much-needed property tax relief. Its formulas prescribed more money per student and included visionary education reforms aimed both at educational excellence and at-risk students," Craddick said of the bill the House passed and sent to the Senate on May 5. "Those accomplishments were overlooked by the critics.
"Our struggle will continue to be on the revenue side," he acknowledged. "The challenge within our group and with our Senate partners will be to find common ground on a comprehensive revenue plan that is fair to taxpayers and the education community, and which gives every single Texas school child the opportunity to reach for the stars."