Public school financing must be Legislature’s top priority

To those of you who managed to read my story on the front page about the Fort Bend County Legislative Conference all the way through, I congratulate you.

You have just discovered a pretty decent sleep aid or at the least a cure for insomnia.

Actually, I hope you did get something out of it. Covering the event was like drinking from the proverbial fire hose. Throughout the course of the day on Nov. 15 at the Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort and Spa near Bastrop there were more than two-dozen speakers and numerous topics with each person trying to get about a 10 of their 100 most important talking points across to the assembly.

I realize the story was long and rambling, but trust me, that was the Cliffs Notes version of the conference. In order to get the key points across I had to leave out numerous speakers, including Texas Comptroller Glen Hager, higher education representatives, and the mayors of each city in the county, to name a few. It’s not that they didn’t have anything important to say – they did – it’s just that there is only so much you can write about from a conference that lasted a day and a half.

Rather than bore you with the details, I want to share some general thoughts and observations about the conference. The conference was the eighth and last biennial conference for County Judge Bob Hebert. The conferences were his brainchild and he and the Greater Fort Bend Economic Development Council hosted it with the very generous underwriting from a laundry list of local businesses.

The reservations for the conference were made back in August, long before the Nov. 6 election. I had the distinct feeling that attendance would have been very different had the election not been washed over by the Blue Tide. Still, it was an excellent opportunity for elected officials new and old to come together and strategize key items they want to see the 86th Legislature address next year. I tried to highlight the key components in my story and I hope that came across.

From the legislative side, we had Sens. Lois Kolkhorst and Borris Miles and Reps. Rick Miller, John Zerwas, and Phil Stephenson there. Notably absent were Rep. Ron Reynolds, who is in jail, and Sen. Joan Huffman. Rep. Miller didn’t call her out by name, but clearly expressed disappointment in Huffman's absence.

“I would have liked to have seen another senator here, personally, but she wasn’t. But that’s her decision. Fort Bend County is a big part of her district and Fort Bend County helped get her elected,” he said.

I checked with her office and they said she had a scheduling conflict that prevented her from attending. She did respond to my request to know her top three priorities going into the session.

“My three priorities for the upcoming session are public education, Harvey recovery and resiliency, and public safety,” Huffman said in a statement Monday. “I will be advocating for a pay raise for our teachers, real property tax and school finance reform, improved flood mitigation and preparedness, and tougher anti-human trafficking laws. As Chair of State Affairs, Vice Chair of Criminal Justice and a Senior Member on Finance, I’ll use my leadership positions to ensure that these issues are front and center when the Legislature reconvenes in January.”

In my mind, the top priority of the 86th Legislature is overhauling public school finance. It should have been the top priority in the last session, but it was barely discussed as lawmakers dealt with a budget shortfall. School finance and healthcare make up the two largest pieces of the budgetary pie. They’re the foundations upon which the rest of the rest of the funding priorities rest. Of those two, school funding is the most complex and has the most direct impact on the people of Texas.

That is because the current funding formula called for a 50/50 split between state and local revenues. Local funding comes from property taxes. Over the years, the state has let that get way out of balance and has forced school districts to rely on increased property tax revenues to cover the lion’s share of local school budgets while the state shifted its share of school funding to other areas. While that oversimplifies a much more complex issue, it basically illustrates why our taxes are so high and the state gives so little to public education. It’s the reason why almost half of my monthly mortgage goes to taxes.

If the Legislature can get school funding in order first, the rest should fall into place. But if they go after the low-hanging fruit first and put off the hard job, they will once again fail to get it done.

Along with school finance, the Legislature has a $2.5 billion gap in Medicaid funding it will have to fill. There is also the need to provide funds to help rebuild from Hurricane Harvey. Those were almost everyone’s top priorities. For the cities and county, another priority is stopping the governor’s proposed 2.5 percent property tax revenue cap. It’s arbitrary and it takes local control away from local governments. Most, including our school districts, would suffer significant loss of revenue with property tax caps.

That would just force them to make up the difference elsewhere, usually by cutting back on services and/or having layoffs. We really don’t want that.

Another key issue the Legislature is going to have to address is school safety. Legislators need to understand that there is no one-size-fits-all program that will work across the board. Ideas like arming teachers or installing metal detectors won’t work in most cases. What our local districts want is more funding for school counselors and computer programs that search social media for warning signs of potential violence.

The schools would rather be proactive than reactive when it comes to the safety of the students. Rather than mandate a school safety program, the Legislature needs to allocate funds to the districts and trust that they know best how to secure their campuses and assure student safety.

Of all the things that were discussed at the legislative conference, there was one little nugget that I latched onto. Sen. Kolkhorst said she wants to see more funding for state parks. Hallelujah! I’ve been a volunteer at Brazos Bend State Park for six years and I see first hand the negative impact on our parks from the lack of funding from the last few legislative sessions. The parks are suffering from neglect and band-aid fixes.

They need a lot of attention or we’re going to start losing them. We’re at the point it will cost more to repair buildings and infrastructure than it would have cost to properly maintain them in the first place. We can’t keep deferring maintenance and cutting personnel. Our parks are important and we need more equipment and people to meet the demands that are being placed on them.
Anyway, I could keep going on, but the point is, the Legislature has a revenue surplus to work with and a lot of problems it needs to fix. We need our Legislators to step up and take care of the big problems first and allow the smaller ones to fall into place after that.

Election results reflect ethnic, gender equality in Fort Bend County

Have you ever noticed how the day after an election feels a lot like Christmas afternoon?

The excitement of opening gifts is over and the weeks of anticipation melt away into reality. Maybe you got something you really wanted (or a candidate you supported) but now that you have it, the hope and anticipation are suddenly gone. Perhaps you got stuck with packages of underwear and socks and didn’t get what you really hoped for (or a favorite candidate lost) and all those weeks spent waiting for a moment that never came leaves you feeling empty.

In Fort Bend County, a lot of people were feeling blue the day after the election, which was a good thing for the Democrats. The Blue Wave washed over the county in a surge that I think even surprised the Democrats. On election night I made a quick stop at a Republican watch party and the mood was very somber. There were cheers for U.S. Rep. Pete Olson, and state Reps. John Zerwas and Rick Miller, but not much else. Sen. Ted Cruz won re-election, but lost significantly in Fort Bend County.

Locally, all seven judges plus the county judge, the district clerk, a county commissioner, and the district attorney seats all went to Democrats. Additionally, state House Rep. Phil Stephenson was washed out in the Blue Wave. The few Republicans who did win in Fort Bend County did so just barely when facing opposition from a Democrat. Gov. Greg Abbott, who won re-election, took Fort Bend County by less than half of a percent.

For the next few weeks and months there will be a lot of analysis of this mid-term election. Did Democrats win because they did a better job at getting out the vote? Did Republicans lose because people were tired of the status quo and wanted change? I’ve heard a lot of grumbling by Republicans about straight-ticket voting, but it never seemed to bother them when they were winning.

I’ve been around long enough to see political pendulums swing back and forth in many places. Even here, this county was once a Democratic stronghold for decades before things shifted to the right in the 1980s. This swing was very clearly to the left. It’s hard to say if this trend started this year or is the result of momentum during the 2016 presidential election where Fort Bend County went for Democrat Hillary Clinton.

I might be wrong on this, but I don’t think this election had so much to do with the liberal ideology as it did with the racial and gender makeup of the candidates. Let’s take a look:

In House District 85, a white Republican man lost to a white Democratic woman. The race for county judge was won by a South Asian Democrat over a white Republican. A black man beat a white man for district attorney. A black woman beat a white woman for district clerk. For the 240^th district court judge seat, a black man defeated a white man. The same went for the 268^th district court.

In the race for county court-at-law judge No. 3, a black woman defeated a white woman. In the county court-at-law judge No. 5 contest, a black woman beat a black man. In the county court-at-law No. 6 spot, a black man beat a white man.

Even in Missouri City’s nonpartisan election, a young, black woman unseated an incumbent black man in one city council race. Now headed to a runoff, the white male mayor is challenged by a black female councilmember and in the other city council runoff, a black male incumbent is up against a white female challenger.

Clearly, women and people of color found unprecedented success at the polls in Fort Bend County. The results appear to reflect more accurately the racial and ethnic makeup of the county. I think that the days of white men holding the lion’s share of political power in this county are probably over. At least that is the message voters sent last week.

So now, what happens next? My guess is there will have to be lot of patience as a large slate of new candidates move into their new positions. Many decades of experience have been vacated and it will take some time for the newcomers to get up to speed. They will all eventually learn their jobs and life will go on.

It is my hope that this election will signal the end of party extremism and the beginning of cooperation and a more moderate leadership. With more balanced political power in the county, we’re all going to have to learn to get along a little better. In the nearly 10 years that I’ve lived in Fort Bend County, I’ve heard a lot of talk about diversity and how unique we are. I guess now we get to prove it. We will start 2019 with probably the most diverse set of elected officials this county has ever seen. Only time will tell if that diversity will pull us together or tear us apart.

It’s my hope that we can learn from each other and become more mindful and tolerant of people who don’t look and think like us. Traditionally, minorities don’t trust whites and vice versa. If we are to move forward, that needs to end. It’s time to find common ground and to build on the things that unite us. I believe that we have been doing that for the most part. Now we’re just turning it up a notch.

Maybe for Christmas this year we could all wish for less partisan bickering and more cooperation to help continue moving our county forward.

Politics, Halloween, and the Texas Renaissance Festival

This is what you get when you cross Halloween 

with the Texas Renaissance Festival. There were 

an abundance of spooky costumes at the festival 

last weekend. (Photo by Joe Southern)

Happy Halloween everyone!

Here’s a scary thought. I’m going to talk about politics again, but only briefly. A few weeks ago I wrote a column titled “It’s time for this red state to bleed a little blue.” There are a couple things about that column that I need to update and clarify.

If you recall, I went on a little rant about how none of our Republican elected officials – with the exception of Rep. Pete Olson – would respond to my wife’s request to present her healthcare plan. Her meeting with Olson appeared to be forgotten as it happened on the day Hurricane Harvey hit.

As it turns out, all the notes taken by a field representative from his district office were not passed on after the staffer left a short time after the hurricane. Immediately after my column ran we were contacted by Olson’s office and Sandy was able to re-present her plan, which was well received. They also promised to help her contact our senators and other state officials. Thank you Pete Olson and Christian Bionat for having the integrity and willingness to make things right.

Secondly, there were a lot of people who didn’t understand how I could be upset with Sen. Ted Cruz’s campaign but still vote for him. It’s simple. I agree with him politically. We are both pro-life, pro-gun, pro-Constitution conservatives. What I don’t like is his demeanor and his bombastic, negative campaigning. In the time since I wrote that column, Beto O’Rourke has started mud-slinging, making his tactics no better than Cruz’s.

Now, on to better things.

Assuming you’re reading this on the day of publication, it’s Halloween. I hope everyone out there is having a fun and safe celebration. We are at the awkward stage of life where we still have kids at home but they are too old to go trick-or-treating. For my kids, Halloween was very different than what I experienced as a child. Back in the day, we planned our costumes for weeks and the excitement built up for what seemed like forever.

When the day came, we got to put on our costumes and parade around the elementary school and enjoy class parties. Then, as evening came, we got to put the costumes back on and Mom would lead us around the neighborhood so we could get candy from all of our neighbors. It was a lot of fun.

My kiddos did get to do that to a certain extent. For the most part, their Halloweens were spent at Trunk-or-Treat or Pumpkin Patch parties put on by churches. As the kids got older they moved on from participant to volunteer, helping run carnival games and passing out candy.

Last weekend we had what will probably be the closest thing we will have to Halloween. On Saturday, Colton, my youngest son, and I helped our church run a carnival at Pecan Grove’s Trunk-or-Treat event. On Sunday we went to the Texas Renaissance Festival where the theme was All Hallows Eve. We got to spend a brief time with my wife and older two sons who are working another season at TRF.

It was fun to see some of the crazy costumes. The weekend at the Texas Renaissance Festival was definitely one big Halloween party. I saw everything from Darth Vader to Wonder Woman to giant space aliens. What any of those things have to do with the renaissance, I’ll never know. Nor can I complain. Last year during the Heroes and Villains weekend I went in my Lone Ranger costume.

The Texas Renaissance Festival takes place every weekend in October and November. Each weekend has a different theme but pretty much the same raucous good time. Up this weekend is the Roman Bacchanal, followed by Heroes and Villains, Highland Fling, and Celtic Christmas. The latter is three days from Friday through Sunday after Thanksgiving and sets the mood for the Christmas season.

If you go, be aware that the roads around Magnolia are still under construction and traffic will be a nightmare during peak times. If you like to camp, I recommend staying at the TRF campground. Not only do you avoid a lot of the traffic, but you can get an early start on the next day. It’s only fair to note that there really isn’t a quiet place to camp. Parties can go on all night and the music blasting from TRF After Dark pulsates through the “quiet” part of the campground. Still, if you’ve spent all day Saturday on your feet in the heat, getting some sleep won’t be a problem.

There is plenty to see and do at the Texas Renaissance Festival. I’m partial to the jousts. There are musical and comedy acts, stage plays, games, shops, food vendors, costumed characters and more. It’s one of the few places where you can buy armor, swords, corsets, dragon eggs, and a wide variety of renaissance period and fantasy and adventure clothing. You can even get a wax casting of your hand.

If you go, I recommend trying Ye Old Time Photo Shoppe (say hi to Sandy for me) or going to Sherwood Forest and shooting some crossbows or longbows (say hi to Luke and Wesley for me).

Another bonus to spending a fun-filled, family weekend at the Texas Renaissance Festival is that you can avoid politics for a day or two. Oh, wait, I did see a guy in a Trump mask Sunday, but that doesn’t count.

What does count is your vote. As long as I’ve come back around to politics, the best advice I have is to get out and vote. It doesn’t matter if you’re Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Green, or just plain unaffiliated. Your vote doesn’t count if you don’t use it. My vote will count, will yours?