logo
Elon Musk's name comes up in debate over school choice bill before it advances to full Texas House

Elon Musk's name comes up in debate over school choice bill before it advances to full Texas House

CBS News03-04-2025

A bill that would spend $1 billion in tax dollars to send students to private schools in Texas is headed to the full House. On Thursday afternoon, the
House Public Education Committee voted out the school choice measure, 9-6 along party lines
. No word yet on how quickly the full House will debate the legislation.
Much of the debate on school choice centers around which students are eligible to receive public money and how much.
Under the House bill voted out of committee many students accepted into the program will receive $10,000 per year to attend an accredited private school. Students with disabilities will receive more than that, perhaps up to $30,000 based on their needs. Home-schooled students would get $2,000.
The program will be capped at $1 billion during the first year, which is the 2026-27 school year.
Forecasts by the Legislative Budget Board (LBB) show by 2030, the cost to taxpayers per year could climb to around $4 billion.
But in response to a question by CBS News Texas during a news conference last week,
Gov. Greg Abbott said that the LBB's estimates are "based on fiction"
and that the legislature will determine the program's budget in future years.
Republicans said, under their bill, low-income students and those with disabilities are prioritized. However, it is a universal program, meaning any student is eligible.
State Rep.James Talarico, D-Austin, said that includes billionaire Elon Musk's children.
"I know Elon Musk is a somewhat humorous example, but wealthy parents, whether the richest man in the world or just a family making over $500,000 a year, they have access to this program," said Talarico. "But it is not limited to the family you just mentioned."
But State Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Salado, who is Chairman of the Public Education Committee, rejected Talarico's argument.
"I don't know the circumstances of every family," said Buckley. "I don't know their tax returns and I don't know the particular challenges a child is having. But what I do know is that when you put choice in the hands of the parents, they'll make the right call and I think the circumstance in which they make that will look different from family to family."
Other Democratic lawmakers criticized the school choice bill saying it would lead to unaccredited private schools.
"This voucher bill will eventually destroy public schools," Rep. Alma Allen, D-Houston said. "I give it 10 years, five sessions from now. Once you open the box, many of these will pop up, and will eventually destroy our public schools."
"The bill requires the schools to be accredited and that's a process and it's in the bill," Buckley responded. "There will not be any pop-up schools."
Rep. James Frank, R-Wichita Falls disagreed with Allen.
"The studies all show public school improvement, academic performance improves," said Frank. "The idea that things are going to completely fall apart, I understand people don't like the bill, but the idea this will destroy public schools is to me fear-mongering."
When the debate on this bill makes it to the House floor, Democrats will try to kill it. Abbott and Speaker Dustin Burrows remain confident they've got more than the 76 votes needed to pass the school choice bill in the House.
The Public Education Committee also passed the school funding bill by a margin of 13-2. It will include nearly $8 billion in new money. It will raise the basic allotment for school districts, which has been $6,160 since 2019 by $395. That is more than the $220 increase proposed in the original bill. Forty percent of that basic allotment will go toward pay raises for teachers and other staff. The bill will automatically raise the basic allotment in future years.
Watching the debate Thursday afternoon became an issue because the House committee chose not to livestream the meeting as is normally the case. CBS News Texas livestreamed the meeting. Watch it in its entirety below:
Watch
Eye On Politics at 7:30 Sunday morning
on CBS News Texas on air and streaming

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

MSNBC host tells Colbert that Trump has started to ‘f— around with the military'
MSNBC host tells Colbert that Trump has started to ‘f— around with the military'

New York Post

time32 minutes ago

  • New York Post

MSNBC host tells Colbert that Trump has started to ‘f— around with the military'

MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace said Tuesday that it felt different to have President Donald Trump 'f— around with the military' in his second term during an interview with late-night host Stephen Colbert. Wallace argued that there were no 'normal Republicans' in Trump's current administration and said 'what's different about Stephen Miller running the ICE raids, and running basically a siege of Los Angeles, is that there is no Mark Esper, Jim Mattis, and that's the big difference, and that is the danger.' Colbert then asked Wallace about the National Guard troops and the Marines that have been sent to Los Angeles to help quell the riots. 'We have seen Trump stretch his presidential powers over the last five months. Is this different?' 'It feels different, it feels different to, can we swear here?' she asked as Colbert said she could. 'To f— around with the military, it feels really different, and he wanted to the first time, but people like Mark Milley, people stopped him. It feels really different to use the military as pawns out loud and as a public tactic. That feels different to me.' A battalion of 700 U.S. Marines are mobilizing in Los Angeles to respond to anti-immigration enforcement riots, just days after Trump deployed the National Guard to the area as well. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson responded to criticism of Trump's actions on Tuesday, telling Fox News Digital that 'violent rioters in Los Angeles, enabled by Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom, have attacked American law enforcement, set cars on fire, and fueled lawless chaos.' On The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace said President Donald Trump 'f— around with the military' had a different feeling compared to what he has done throughout his time in office. Scott Kowalchyk/CBS 'President Trump rightfully stepped in to protect federal law enforcement officers. When Democrat leaders refuse to protect American citizens, President Trump will always step in,' she added. Colbert also asked Wallace about the state of the Democratic Party and asked the MSNBC host if they were 'in danger of an autocrat.' 'I don't know, and I think that, in politics, you are one leader away from a comeback, you're one moody character away from this unlikely hero. And so I think the Democratic Party hasn't rotted. I mean the Democratic Party has not corrupted itself, it hasn't turned on itself in the way that the Republican Party has. And I think the Democratic Party is one leader away from being something fresh and appealing to a majority of others again. I think the Republican Party is still heading down, down, down following Trump and his authoritarian ways,' she said. Wallace claims there are no 'normal Republicans' in Trump's current administration and that the difference is that with Stephen Miller running the ICE raids, it is basically running a siege in Los Angeles, California. AP Wallace previously made headlines earlier this year while covering Trump's address to Congress, during which the president made a 13-year-old cancer survivor, DJ Daniel, an honorary Secret Service agent. 'But I think this was a lesson in finding one thing that you let yourself feel,' Wallace said during her coverage of the address. 'And I let myself feel joy about DJ, and I hope he's alive for another, you know, 95 years, and I hope he lives the life he wants to live. He wants to be a cop. He knows what he wants to do, and maybe when you have childhood cancer, that crystallizes for you.' 'I hope he has a long life as a law enforcement officer,' she continued. 'But I hope he never has to defend the United States Capitol against Donald Trump's supporters, and if he does, I hope he isn't one of the six who loses his life to suicide, and I hope he isn't one who has to testify against the people who carried out acts of seditious conspiracy and then lived to see Donald Trump pardon those people.' The MSNBC host was criticized by Trump and the White House at the time.

Nirenberg says San Antonio did not get heads-up about Texas National Guard
Nirenberg says San Antonio did not get heads-up about Texas National Guard

Axios

time34 minutes ago

  • Axios

Nirenberg says San Antonio did not get heads-up about Texas National Guard

Mayor Ron Nirenberg said San Antonio did not request, nor receive notice of, the Texas National Guard being here ahead of protests planned on Saturday against the Trump administration. Why it matters: Gov. Greg Abbott's decision to send the Texas National Guard to major city protests comes amid a national debate about the militarization of law enforcement and the rights of protesters. Catch up quick: Thousands are expected to protest during "No Kings Day" on Saturday nationwide and in downtown San Antonio. Organizers expect it will be the largest single-day rally against President Trump since the start of his second term. Abbott instructed the Texas National Guard to "use every tool and strategy to help law enforcement maintain order." The White House has already deployed the National Guard and Marines in response to protests in Los Angeles against Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. Reality check: A San Antonio rally last weekend, in protest of ICE deportations and recent local arrests at the courthouse, remained peaceful. Zoom in: Democratic U.S. Reps. Joaquin Castro and Greg Casar said Abbott's decision is "inflammatory" and that he's "escalating tensions rather than promoting safety." What they're saying:"I have full faith and confidence in our community to exercise their First Amendment rights peacefully," Nirenberg said Wednesday at a press conference.

Consultant on trial for AI-generated robocalls mimicking Biden says he has no regrets
Consultant on trial for AI-generated robocalls mimicking Biden says he has no regrets

Hamilton Spectator

time35 minutes ago

  • Hamilton Spectator

Consultant on trial for AI-generated robocalls mimicking Biden says he has no regrets

LACONIA, N.H. (AP) — A political consultant told a New Hampshire jury Wednesday that he doesn't regret sending voters robocalls that used artificial intelligence to mimic former President Joe Biden and that he's confident he didn't break the law. Steven Kramer, 56, of New Orleans, has long admitted to orchestrating a message sent to thousands of voters two days before New Hampshire's Jan. 23, 2024, presidential primary. Recipients heard an AI-generated voice similar to the Democratic president's that used his catchphrase 'What a bunch of malarkey' and, as prosecutors allege, suggested that voting in the primary would preclude voters from casting ballots in November. 'It's important that you save your vote for the November election,' voters were told. 'Your votes make a difference in November, not this Tuesday.' Kramer, who faces decades in prison if convicted of voter suppression and impersonating a candidate, said his goal was to send a wake-up call about the potential dangers of AI when he paid a New Orleans magician $150 to create the recording. He was getting frequent calls from people using AI in campaigns, and, worried about the lack of regulations, made it his New Year's resolution to take action. 'This is going to be my one good deed this year,' he recalled while testifying in Belknap County Superior Court. He said his goal wasn't to influence an election, because he didn't consider the primary a real election. At Biden's request, the Democratic National Committee dislodged New Hampshire from its traditional early spot in the 2024 nominating calendar but later dropped its threat not to seat the state's national convention delegates. Biden did not put his name on the ballot or campaign there but won as a write-in. Kramer, who owns a firm specializing in get-out-the-vote projects, argued that the primary was a meaningless straw poll unsanctioned by the DNC. At the time the calls went out, voters were disenfranchised, he said. Asked by his attorney, Tom Reid, whether he did anything illegal, Kramer said, 'I'm positive I did not.' Later, he said he had no regrets and that his actions likely spurred AI regulations in multiple states. Kramer, who will be questioned by prosecutors Thursday, also faces a $6 million fine by the Federal Communications Commission but told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he won't pay it. Lingo Telecom, the company that transmitted the calls, agreed to pay $1 million in a settlement in August. The robocalls appeared to come from a former New Hampshire Democratic Party chair, Kathy Sullivan, and told voters to call her number to be removed from the call list. On the witness stand earlier Wednesday, Sullivan said she was confused and then outraged after speaking to one of the recipients and later hearing the message. 'I hung up the phone and said, 'There is something really crazy going on,'' she said. 'Someone is trying to suppress the vote for Biden. I can't believe this is happening.' Months later, she got a call from Kramer in which he said he used her number because he knew she would contact law enforcement and the media. He also described his motive — highlighting AI's potential dangers — but she didn't believe him, she testified. 'My sense was he was trying to convince me that he'd done this defensible, good thing,' she said. 'I'm listening to this thinking to myself, 'What does he thing I am, stupid?' He tried to suppress the vote.' Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store