Congresswoman Lee Calls On Businesses To Raise Money For Schools

HOUSTON, TX — Local lawmakers and officials from Houston ISD gathered Tuesday for a press conference to address concerns in the school district, the largest in Texas and seventh-largest in the country. Among them were how to fill the superintendent vacancy and ask the state's education agency to grant a waiver of state accountability testing for one year and a suspension of accountability sanctions.

Then there was U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (Democrat, 18th District), who called upon the business community to help shore up the $115 million projected budget shortfall for the 2018-19 school year.

"There are still families displaced by Hurricane Harvey," she said. "And while we are a resilient Houston, we are not the Houston and Harris County we have been."

She said it would be a one-time infusion to close the pending massive deficit.

Jackson Lee emphasized that all three levels of government have one goal: "to prioritize our children and our families, to say thank you to our teachers and staff, our bus drivers and law enforcement, and to express our appreciation for the unity of the HISD school board."

The Texas Education Agency lays out how schools are funded. It says this on Page 7 of its manual:

"Funding for Texas's public schools comes from three main sources: local school district property taxes, state funds, and federal funds. The majority of funding comes from local property taxes, which
are collected by school districts, and state funding. The purpose of this document is to explain state
and local funding of Texas public schools, as it is administered through the state's Foundation School
Program."

This means the Congresswoman is asking private businesses and citizens who already pay into the tax system to try and pay even more.

To put $115 million into context, the City of Houston and Harris County collectively raised a little more than $125 million for the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund, and J.J. Watt helped raise another $37 million. But natural disasters are unforeseen circumstances.

The initial "worst-case scenario" unveiled by HISD last month stated the budget shortfall could be $208 million, but it was later reduced to $115 million. Four dynamic factors play a role in the pending shortfall:

1. The Local Optional Homestead Exemption (LOHE) lawsuit
2. A recapture payment to the state
3. A potential property tax value decrease
4. An anticipated student enrollment decline

Under the Texas Education Code, TEA Commissioner Mike Morath has the authority to adjust property values. Based on the damage sustained from Hurricane Harvey and the lasting impact of the storm on HISD students and staff, the district anticipates the commissioner will adjust property values, which in turn, would reduce our recapture payment.

Governor Greg Abbott, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and other state leaders have publicly stated their support for this action.

If the budget shortfall becomes reality, it would mean a reduction in faculty and support staff for at least a year, which would most likely put even more schools behind the curb.

Then there are 10 already underperforming schools that are in jeopardy of being taken over by the state. Jackson Lee called on the TEA to grant a waiver of state accountability testing for one year and a suspension of accountability sanctions.

HISD Board of Education President Rhonda Skillern-Jones said the departure of Superintendent Richard Carranza doesn't change the vision and mission of the district, which remains committed to delivering a quality education to all children "in a unified way."

"We are one vision, and that is to ensure IR (Improvement Required) schools come off IR, that we don’t have any additional schools go into IR, and that we can use our use limited dollars in a way that does the least harm to impact our classrooms," Skillern-Jones said.

Image: U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) delivers remarks on the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center, July 27, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)