Seat Belts on Buses Face Funding Cuts As Date Looms

A 2007 law mandating three-point seat belts on all new Texas school buses takes effect this Wednesday. Any buses purchased after September 1st must be equipped with the seat belts. The law, HB 323, was drafted by State Rep. Mike Hamilton and State Sen. Eddie Lucio.

During the 2009 legislative session, lawmakers appropriated $10 million for fiscal year 2011 for the seat belt program, dependent on developing a plan to reimburse school districts for the cost associated with seat belts on new buses. That reimbursement plan, developed by the Texas Transportation Institute and Texas Education Agency, is complete. However, authorization by the Legislative Budget Board is pending.

A representative from TEA told local news outlet KXAN that the LBB has not yet approved the implementation and reimbursement plan, and that TEA is not authorized to implement the program until it's approved. Meanwhile, TEA recommended the fund be cut from $10 million to just $3.6 million.  TEA and other state agencies were asked to cite programs where cuts could be made in order to reach a 5 percent total budget decrease.

AISD Performance Improvements Mean End of Oversight for Low Performing Schools

from Austin ISD

The Texas Education Agency has informed Superintendent Meria Carstarphen that it has terminated the three-year assignment of a Management Team to “address longstanding academic performance issues at certain campuses,” and “to oversee the continued implementation of school improvement and/or reconstitution plans for multi-year AU campuses” within Austin Independent School District.       

The TEA Management Team had been assigned to the Austin School District since November 2007.    

In a letter to Dr. Carstarphen, Education Commissioner Robert Scott wrote, “The academic progress reflected in the 2010 academic accountability ratings leads me to conclude that it is no longer necessary for the TEA-assigned management team to direct the actions of the district for matters related to academic improvement.”
        

TEA released its latest Accountability Ratings on July 30, 2010, and 109 Austin campuses—or 99 percent—now meet, or exceeds, state standards.  A total of 68 Austin schools are now rated either Exemplary or Recognized, more than ever before.  Seven Austin schools advanced from Academically Unacceptable in 2009 to Academically Acceptable in 2010, and AISD now has only one campus rated AU.
        

At his July 30 press conference, announcing the new state ratings, Commissioner Scott said of AISD, “They’re making improvements.  It makes me happy because I see a commitment to the East side and as I said last year, east and west need to meet and agree that all our kids deserve the same education opportunities and we’re starting to see progress.”