Latest news with #HouseBill4
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Bill to replace Texas STAAR test fails
The Brief A bill to replace the STAAR test failed to pass the Texas legislature The House and Senate could not agree on key differences. The Texas State Teachers Association opposed the Senate's version, preferring no bill to what they saw as overreach by the education commissioner. AUSTIN - Texas lawmakers failed to come to an agreement on a bill that would have replaced the STAAR test in the state. Dig deeper House Bill 4, authored by state Rep. Brad Buckley (R-Salado), would have replaced the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) with three shorter tests during the school year. Under the bill, the tests would have been given out in October, from mid-January to early-February, and late May. Different versions of the bill passed the House and Senate, but the two chambers could not agree on differences. The Senate was pushing to keep a social studies test and for the Texas Education Agency commissioner to be able to set strict standards for school districts' letter-grade system. The House wanted the state legislature to approve any changes to the A-F ratings made by the TEA. The STAAR test has been used for students in grades three through 11 since 2012. What they're saying The Texas State Teachers Association had urged state legislators to vote no on the Senate version of the bill. "We think we are better off that there is no bill at all than what the Senate wanted to do. We thought the Senate gave far too much authority to the unelected state commissioner," the union wrote on social media. The Source Information in this article comes from documents from Texas Legislature on House Bill 4 and statements by the Texas State Teachers Association.
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Bill to scrap the STAAR test fails in the Texas Legislature
AUSTIN, Texas (KMID/KPEJ) – A bill aimed at scrapping the STAAR exam, co-authored by State Representative Brooks Landgraf, has failed in the Texas Legislature this session. House Bill 4 would have State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness test for three shorter tests given throughout the school year. Rep. Langraf released a statement saying, in part, 'As I've reported, the bill I co-authored to scrap the STAAR was passed overwhelmingly here in the Texas House of Representatives. Then we sent the bill—HB 4—to the Texas Senate. Rather than vote up-or-down on the good bill we sent to them, the Senate amended HB 4. Rather than scrap STAAR, the Senate amendments would have just created STAAR 2.0. Lipstick on a pig. This is an old trick that's been done before, and as a member of the conference committee, I wouldn't go along with it. I think it would've been insulting to our students, teachers and taxpayers to change the name the test and pretend like we got rid of STAAR. After desperately trying to get the Senate to go back to the original bill that would have actually scrapped STAAR, they dug in and refused. In this case, not passing the bill would be better than lying to the people of Texas about scrapping STAAR. With the legislative session adjourning Monday, this all means HB 4 is dead. HB 4 (as passed by the House) would have been great for Texas students, teachers and taxpayers. It would have also been good politics for any lawmaker who helped pass it. I won't give up the fight to scrap STAAR, and neither should you. But we will have some more work to do.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
DeWine signs bill to designate ‘Ohio Stillbirth Prevention Day'
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed a bill Wednesday that advocates hope will help prevent a silent crisis in the Buckeye state: stillbirths. Ohio is a statistical outlier when it comes to stillbirths, with an average of nearly 900 cases reported each year. That's more than the national average, and studies show about a third of them are preventable. House Bill 4 aims to address the problem by designating 'Ohio Stillbirth Prevention Day,' a day that will start a broader conversation about stillbirth prevention and the care provided to Ohio families who have experienced the loss of a child. 2025 National Spelling Bee: Columbus eighth grader narrowly misses final 'This is a personal cause for me,' NBC4's Jennifer Bullock said. 'After losing my son nearly four years ago, we started 'Miles' Mission' to advocate for this cause. And my family and I were honored to join Governor Mike DeWine this morning as he signed the bill into law.' The bill was sponsored by Rep. Adam Holmes (R-Nashport) and Rep. Cecil Thomas (D-Cincinnati). Ohio Stillbirth Prevention Day will be on Sept. 19. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Texas Senate approves ending STAAR test, sends bill back to House for approval
AUSTIN (Nexstar) — The Texas Senate approved legislation Tuesday night aimed at revising the state's school accountability system and replacing the standardized test with a version meant to reduce anxiety for students. House Bill 4 will now head back to its originating chamber for final approval before going to the Governor's desk. The Senate's version of the bill, authored by State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R – Houston, would prohibit school districts from suing the state to block the A-F accountability ratings in which schools are evaluated. In 2023, more than 100 school districts sued the Texas Education Agency to stop the release of the ratings over anticipated changes in how the scores would be calculated. The bill would also authorize state interventions in school districts that do not comply with the accountability statutes. 'What gets measured gets fixed, but you can't fix what you can't measure,' Bettencourt said in a news release. 'HB 4 ensures accountability ratings are released clearly, fairly, and with purpose to measure performance, report results and help schools improve.' One of the biggest elements of the bill is ending the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, or STAAR test. There have been complaints on both sides of the aisle that the STAAR test is forcing schools to teach kids for the test and not teaching them the curriculum, on top of creating high anxiety on students taking the exam. Instead, schools would switch to a three-test model that is spaced throughout the year. Students would take a national norm-referenced assessment at the beginning of the year, middle of the year, and the end of the year. It will give teachers immediate results on testing to see how students are progressing throughout the year. The current STAAR testing model does not provide testing results until the summer when students are out of school away from their teachers. Educators have complained the results come too late to help a student improve while they are in the classroom. Unlike the version the House passed earlier this month, the Senate's version would eliminate the STAAR test in the upcoming 2025-2026 school year. The STAAR elimination and replacement would be phased-in over the next three years, giving time to run pilot programs and train teachers. The House will have to approve the changes before it can go to the Governor's desk for signature. Sen. Bettencourt was asked if the House members who worked on the original bill were happy with the changes. Bettencourt said they like the new version. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Bills targeting library operations die in Alabama Legislature
Books in the young adult section of the Ozark - Dale County Library on Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2023 in Ozark, Ala. Two bills -- one that could have subjected librarians to obscenity prosecutions and one that would have allow city or county governments to remove library board members failed to move in the Alabama Legislature's recently-concluded 2025 regular session. (Stew Milne for Alabama Reflector) The battles over library content continue throughout Alabama. But two bills that could have affected how libraries operate failed to move in the Legislature's 2025 session. One measure, HB 4, would have applied state obscenity laws to public libraries and their employees if there were materials judged to be obscene in the children's section. The other, SB 6, would have allowed cities and counties to terminate members of the library boards without cause. The battles over library books began in Alabama in 2023, after a parent using the Autauga-Prattville Library complained about a book in the children's section that had inclusive pronouns. Similar fights have erupted all over the state. Supporters of restrictions say they are trying to get obscene material out of children's sections of the library. Critics say those restrictions target books with LGBTQ+ characters and themes and not necessarily obscene books. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX 'Our devoted and beleaguered librarians will not have to worry about being handcuffed and jailed for refusing to censor books under House Bill 4, the 'Jail the Librarians bill,' which never made it out of its House Committee,' said Read Freely Alabama, a group that opposes new library restrictions, in a statement shortly after the 2025 legislative session ended. 'Furthermore, the bill which would have politicized our library boards even more (SB 6) once again died before making it to the Senate floor.' Multiple messages seeking comment were left with Rep. Arnold Mooney, R-Indian Springs, the sponsor of HB 4, and Sen. Chris Elliott, R-Josephine, the sponsor of SB 6. Amy Minton, a member of the Alabama Public Library Service (APLS) Board and an advocate of additional restrictions on library content, said in an interview that she was 'a little surprised that people get so upset about the obscenity or sexually explicit materials.' 'If they don't have it in the library, why do they get so upset about them being asked to be moved, whether through a law or policy?' she said. HB 4 would have amended the state's obscenity laws to make public libraries and librarians criminally liable for making materials that are sexually explicit or harmful to minors available. The legislation would have allowed residents served by the library to file a notice with the staff that they believe there are sexually explicit or inappropriate materials found in sections of the library dedicated to minors. Libraries would then have to relocate the materials to the adult section or remove them entirely. They can also notify the public that they have determined the item is in the appropriate section, which any resident can then challenge. Noncompliance would have subjected librarians to prosecution under Alabama obscenity laws, which can be as severe as a Class B felony, punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $30,000 fine. SB 6 would have mandated that library board members be appointed to a four-year term and that members could be removed from the board with a two-thirds of the members of the governing body, either the city or county, agree by vote. The House Judiciary Committee never considered HB 4. SB 6 got approval from the Senate County and Municipal Government Committee, which Elliott chairs, but did not come to a vote on the Senate floor. Mooney's obscenity bill was approved further along in the 2024 session, receiving approval from members of the House and even getting approved in the Senate Children and Youth Health Committee before it stalled in the Senate. Elliott's legislation was approved in the Senate and the House County and Municipal Government Committee where it remained as the session ended. Advocates of restrictions have succeeded in convincing the Alabama Public Library Service, the state agency that oversees local library funding, to impose policy changes that favor more restrictions. In March, the APLS Board suspended funding to the Fairhope Public Library in Baldwin County while also voting to have Pack terminated after Minton made a motion. Supporters of the library raised money to replace the lost funding and defended the library at city council and APLS meetings. Alabama GOP chair John Wahl, who currently serves as chair of the APLS Board, said at a meeting earlier this month that members are waiting for the Fairhope Public Library to complete its review of the books that parents challenged before resuming funding to the library. 'We know that the fight isn't over. As we speak, a stacked and extreme Alabama Public Library Service board continues its assault on libraries, stripping funding from those who will not cave to their demands,' Read Freely Alabama said in the statement. 'And even today, as this session closes, opposing forces are already crafting legislation for a chosen representative to prefile, and are regrouping to continue their assault on our freedoms and beloved public institutions at the next legislative session.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
