Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst recently appointed Senator Dan Patrick (who led those August hearings) as the new chairman of the Education Committee. You can get a sense of what this means just by looking at the headlines:
- “New school voucher fight looms”, Gary Scharrer & Peggy Fikac, San Antonio Express-News, October 4, 2012.
- “Patrick appointment signals looming voucher fight at Capitol”, Peggy Fikac & Joe Holley, Houston Chronicle, October 4, 2012.
- “Education gets high priority in new Senate chair picks”, Mike Ward, Austin American-Statesman, October 4, 2012.
- “Dewhurst taps Patrick as head of Senate schools panel”, Robert T. Garrett, Dallas Morning News, October 4, 2012.
- “Lt. Gov. Dewhurst Shuffles Senate Committee Chairs”, Reeve Hamilton & Morgan Smith, Texas Tribune, October 4, 2012.
So, it sounds like the 2013 legislature is going to look at school vouchers.
Patrick’s appointment drew a positive response from David Dunn, Executive Director of the Texas Charter Schools Association:
“We were heartened to see Sen. Patrick announced as the new chairman of the Senate Education Committee,” said David Dunn, executive director of the Texas Charter Schools Association. “Dan Patrick has been a champion for parents and students for years, and Texas charter schools can look forward to a busy, productive session with continued strong Senate education leadership in place.”
(from a press release). The articles linked above include anti-voucher comments from Carolyn Boyle, Chair, Texas Parent PAC; Rita Haecker, President, Texas State Teachers’ Association; and F. Scott McCown, Executive Director, Center for Public Policy Priorities.
