My Testimony on HB 3 the Voucher Bill

Suzanne Bellsnyder testifies in opposition to HB 3, emphasizes the importance of rural students and the impact on rural communities.

Earlier this month, I traveled to Austin to testify on behalf of rural students and represent the position of rural communities on the pending House version of the private school voucher bill. There were 22 1/2 hours of testimony on the bill, and I stayed to testify at 3:00 am. Overwhelmingly, the in-person testimony was in opposition to HB 3, and an unprecedented number, more than 12,000 Texans, submitted testimony online, with the majority of those submitting testimony also in opposition, representing all communities across Texas, including significant testimony from Republicans and conservatives who oppose the bill.

It is anticipated that HB 3 (or its Senate companion SB2) will move out of the House Education Committee next week and then make it to the floor mid-April, if not earlier. We are hearing that legislators are struggling with how they will vote on the bill, and despite the messaging coming from the Governor on his signature issue, that the votes are not there and many legislators still have problems with parts of the legislation. The Governor, Ted Cruz, and pro-voucher groups are spending money running advertising and text messaging campaigns, further confirming our intel that the votes may not be there.

If public schools matter to you and you have not weighed in on this issue, you can contact your Texas House Representative in Austin using this link.