By J. Lyn Carl, GalleryWatch.com
Austin, TX –
Debate on public school reform legislation has gone from a "do over" to a "crash and burn," and now to a "start over."
After seven hours of backroom negotiations, arm-twisting and caucusing, the Senate decided late in the evening to go back to square one.
"I have a new bill that I would like to file tomorrow morning," said Sen. Florence Shapiro (R-Plano) as the Senate gave up tonight on bringing her SB 2 to the floor. Shapiro said once her new bill is filed, she will ask Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst to refer the bill to the Senate Education Committee for a hearing. That hearing, she said, will be at 10 a.m. Monday in Room E1.036. She urged Senate members to attend, and to "invite your superintendents, your teacher groups, PTA...anyone who wants to be a stakeholder."
The hearing will "begin a new process," said Shapiro, adding, "I think you're going to like this new bill." She said Senate conferees have worked on the new bill for about a week, and have met with as many as 20 school superintendents from across the state who she said "seemed to like the concepts" of the bill.
Shapiro also said she wants a "buy-in" from the community and from all stakeholders. "I hope this will satisfy everybody's desires and needs."
The Education Committee Chair and author of SB 2 said she hopes to get the new bill to the Senate floor by the end of next week.
Sen. Eliot Shapleigh (D-El Paso) asked that since the Hochberg amendment in the House "seems to be the guts of what has some support on both sides," if Shapiro would consider testimony and a full hearing on the amendment so that the impact of what the amendment could do can be aired.
"That is not in my bill," said Shapiro. "I have no intention of putting it in my bill." She said the amendment would "cost $2.5 billion more than we have" and that she plans for her bill to "work within the confines of what we know we have in dollars."
The Plano Republican said her bill is "ready to go" and that a final check of "all the pieces of it" is being done. "I don't want to file a bill that has a lot of amendments."