SB 205 / HB 3271 Texas Partnership for Children in Nature - On House Calendars for today (which given the pace of bills this week is not indicative of when this bill will be heard).
SB 205 supported by more radical environmental groups such as the Sierra Club will establish an appointed board dedicated to education concerning the protection of the environment. It will:
- Devise a method to measure… the amount of time children spend outdoors."
- Review current environmental literacy levels in public schools."
- Identify curriculum necessary to develop environmentally literate students.
- Develop methods to annually measure and report at the state and local levels progress of public school students toward becoming environmentally literate."
- Identify opportunities for and barriers to implementing environmental literacy programs in public schools
Some conservative groups such as the Texas Eagle Forum have voiced their opposition to this bill believing its underlying purpose is to indoctrinate Texas school children with the green agenda.
SB 1569 - Allows Texas to accept $555 million in federal unemployment insurance money from the stimulus package. Conservatives including Governor Perry have vowed to turn down this money as it expands unemployment standards in Texas and will force businesses to pay out more unemployment benefits once the stimulus money runs dry.
Carried by
Rep. Strama (D-Austin) the bill was brought up yesterday followed by a number of amendments. After much debate and little substantive change the bill was postponed to be heard at a later time (was to be heard yesterday evening until the equipment malfunctions forced the House to adjourn early).
Top Ten Percent - The House spent nearly 5 hours yesterday debating whether or not to cap the top ten percent rule for Texas public universities. The University of Texas is pushing lawmakers to adopt these new rules as over 80 of their 2008 freshman class were admitted under the ten percent law. University officials expect this number to continue to rise which will ultimately hurt their ability to recruit and accept students with a wide range of talents and passions.
The House amended the bill to reduce the percentage from top 10 to top 8 but the 8 figure would only apply to UT.
Debate on the bill was cut short and is expected to resume today.
HB 824 (Written by Jonathan Saenz from the Free Market Foundation) -
HB 824 sponsored by
Rep. Scott Hochberg (D-Houston) expands hate crimes to now be used to prosecute kids. One of the protection class of people under this bill is those who defines themselves by "sexual preference."
It also allows a judge to order these kids go to re-education program so the child can show he or she has acceptance" of others basically forcing them to accept the homosexual lifestyle and not oppose such. The judge can also order the child to perform a project that serves the interest of the offended group of persons.
The hearing is before Senate State Affairs.
This type of thought police law is further evidence of a desire to control peoples minds and not allow them to have opposing views particularly on the issue of homosexuality. This law allows Texas to target them when they are young so they can re-program their mind on these kind of issues. We have also seen hate crimes law be used as a weapon against free speech like in the case of the Philadelphia 11.
