We Are Allen Tx.

05/29/2023

A reminder to vote in the upcoming runoff election for Collin College Board candidates, Scott Coleman and Dr. Stacey Donald. Voting dates are May 30-June 3, June 5-6, and Election Day, June 10.

Runoffs have notoriously low turnout. This election will likely be won by 20-30 votes. If Scott and Stacey are elected, the nine-member board will have three women for the first time in its history and it will add new blood to the board. Please make a plan to vote!

05/29/2023

05/28/2023

05/26/2023

The attorney general, reelected last year by voters who shrugged off his scandals, is accused of a yearslong pattern of alleged misconduct and lawbreaking. The full House is expected to consider the articles soon.

05/24/2023

The Texas House of Representatives gave crucial approval on Tuesday to a Republican-backed effort rooted in conspiracy theories that would remove the state from a national coalition that helps prevent voter fraud.

Senate Bill 1070, authored by state Sen. Bryan Hughes, was approved by the House on a 85-61 vote. The bill would allow Texas to withdraw from the Electronic Registration Information Center, also known as ERIC, a multistate program used for checking duplicate voter registrations and cleaning voter rolls. The bill is now headed back to the Senate for approval of changes proposed by Rep. John Bucy, D-Austin, that would add requirements to comply with federal and state privacy guidelines if an alternative system is contracted by the state.

https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/23/texas-voter-fraud-eric-voting-roll/

05/24/2023

Another high-profile education bill, Senate Bill 9, passed the House Tuesday, with several amendments attached. The original bill gave teachers a one-time bonus of $2,000, plus an additional $6,000 for teachers in small districts. The House tacked on several other education priorities, which the Senate will have to agree to — or, more likely, the two chambers will have to duke out their differing priorities in conference committee.

Per Texas AFT, the amendments included a $15 min wage for
bus drivers and a $1000 basic allotment hike.

https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/24/texas-legislature-senate-priorities/

05/24/2023

A drastically different version of a school funding bill that’s being used as a last-ditch effort to enact a voucher-like program in Texas was given final approval by the Senate on Tuesday right before midnight. But the House is expected to reject the changes.

The Senate voted 18-13 to advance its version of House Bill 100. Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, joined Democrats in voting against the bill. The bill now heads back to the House, where members will most likely have to negotiate the differences with the Senate. But with only five days left in the Legislative session, it's a race against time for both chambers to reach a compromise.

https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/22/texas-senate-school-voucher/

05/24/2023

House Bill 900, which would set new standards for school libraries to keep sexually explicit content off bookshelves, is heading to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk. Librarians, legal experts and some parents are concerned that the bill’s language is vague and broad enough to ensnare books that are not inappropriate.

The upper chamber formally approved the bill with a 19-12 vote along party lines just before midnight Tuesday. Without any changes to the legislation, HB 900 is now on its way to the the governor. Abbott’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment regarding his support for the legislation.

https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/23/texas-schools-libraries-books/

05/24/2023

On Tuesday night, the Texas House of Representatives killed several top Senate priority bills on bail, immigration, judges and school safety, in a midnight massacre that dashed hopes of a harmonious end to the session.

The two chambers have been increasingly at odds on issues like property taxes and school choice, but Tuesday night, those disagreements spilled over into priorities the chambers had generally agreed on.

Senate priority bills that would have made it a crime to enter the country outside a port of entry (still in HB7 - see next comment); allowed judges to more often deny bail; and disciplined judges that set low or no bail met unceremonious ends in the House.

Several other high profile bills died simply because they did not make it to the floor before the midnight deadline, including an effort to get the 10 Commandments posted in public schools.

https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/24/texas-legislature-senate-priorities/

05/24/2023

A controversial bill that would have required Texas public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom has failed on Tuesday. Senate Bill 1515 was effectively killed early Wednesday morning after House lawmakers did not meet a 12 midnight deadline for a vote that would have advanced the bill for a third and final passage .

https://www.wishtv.com/news/national/a-bill-that-would-have-required-texas-public-schools-to-display-the-ten-commandments-has-failed/