A bill to implement school vouchers in Texas sailed through the Senate largely on party lines last week and now awaits consideration in the House, the Austin American-Statesman reported. House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, said he believes there are enough votes in that chamber to pass the legislation, which was defeated a half-dozen times in 2023 by a coalition of Democratic and rural Republican members.

“As Speaker, I’m committed to ensuring the agenda of the Texas House remains truly member-driven this session,” Burrows said in a statement. “I support empowering parents to decide the best educational option for their children.”

The bill’s supporters, which include Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and other top elected officials, say it would give students access to more school choices. Opponents fear the $1 billion program will siphon funding and students away from public schools already facing budget deficits.

The political director of the Texas Freedom Network said legislators should focus on funding public schools instead.

“Voucher schemes steal vital funds from kids in our neighborhood schools, all so megadonors and the politicians in their pockets can subsidize private and religious schools for the wealthy at our expense,” Rocìo Fierro-Pérez said.

Abbott outlines his legislative priorities

Abbott outlined his legislative priorities in a speech last Sunday. Besides school vouchers, he wants state lawmakers to cut property taxes by $10 billion, launch a massive water project to ensure adequate supplies, and restrict bail for a number of crimes, the Houston Chronicle reported. Other priorities include pay raises for teachers and investment in nuclear energy as a way to “fortify” the state’s electric grid.

Abbott is backing a plan by state Sen. Charles Perry, R-Amarillo, which would invest in several large projects to increase the state’s water supply. Among the projects are desalination plants and a network of pipelines to distribute water. 

“We will make the largest investment in water in the history of Texas,” Abbott said. “We will tap into new water supplies and repair pipes to save billions of gallons of water each year.”

The Democratic response to Abbott’s State of the State address blasted the governor for being too friendly with President Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, who is leading an effort to eliminate federal government waste and inefficiency.

“The fact is people are struggling after 30 years of Republican rule,” Gilberto Hinojosa, the former Democratic Party chair, said in the response.

Dairy, poultry producers grapple with bird flu

By now, most everyone has noticed the steep rise in the price of eggs, which is being blamed on the spread of avian flu, first detected in a flock of pheasants in Erath County nearly three years ago, the Texas Standard reported.

“It’s a supply-and-demand issue,” said J.C. Essler, executive vice president of the Texas Poultry Federation. “When we’re putting multiple flocks down, and our layer operations can be up to a million birds, you’re taking a substantial supply out of the market.”

Thus far in Texas, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have confirmed 14 cases of bird flu at poultry farms, only one of which was at a large-scale farm with 2 million chickens. There have been 27 confirmed cases at Texas dairy farms.

The potential economic impact could be huge if bird flu continues to spread in the state. The poultry industry contributes more than $5 billion to the state economy annually, while dairy operations add $53.8 billion.

One longtime researcher of bird flu at Texas A&M University said he didn’t expect the virus to spread from human to human; 67 cases of it being transmitted to humans from poultry or cattle have been recorded, including one in Texas. One death has been reported.

“If we ever start seeing human-to-human transmission, that tells us the virus is adapting to humans,” said Gerald Parker, associate dean for Global One Health at A&M. “That would not be a good sign.”

State struggling to fix leaky abandoned oil wells

Abandoned oil wells turned into water sources are threatening aquifers that supply water to cities, farms and ranches, the Statesman reported, particularly in rural West Texas where oil exploration began nearly a century ago. The leaky wells are called P-13 wells after a Texas Railroad Commission form that allowed them to be repurposed to provide water.

The state has recorded 1,915 P-13 wells, though many more likely exist undetected and undocumented. They have the potential to become environmental disasters. One example is the 60-acre Lake Boehmer in Pecos County, formed by a leaky well. It emits high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide, a potentially fatal gas.

The state committed $10 million to plugging the leaky wells in 2023, but two years later none of that money has been distributed. Even that amount, whenever it is actually spent, is likely inadequate to solve the problem, since plugging a single well can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

“We do not know how much it will cost to plug each well, so we cannot determine how many wells could be plugged under this program,” said Ricky Richter, a spokesperson for TCEQ. Federal funds that are being used to plug orphan gas and oil wells can’t be used for P-13 wells, since they are no longer considered oil wells.

 Abbott backs legalizing sports gambling in Texas

Abbott recently said on the Texas Take Podcast that he has no objection to Texas joining 39 other states that have legalized sports betting, the San Antonio Express-News reported.

“I don’t have a problem with online sports betting,” Abbott said in the interview. “The reality is that I’d be shocked if there were not some Texans that do it already.”

A coalition of major sports franchises including the Dallas Cowboys, San Antonio Spurs and Houston Astros have teamed up with several sports gaming companies to push for legalized sports gambling. They have hired more than a dozen lobbyists and have tapped former Gov. Rick Perry and Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta to help make their pitch to legislators to pass such a measure. The issue ultimately would require voters to approve a constitutional amendment.

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