“A lot of people were salivating over the funds and the patronage, and picturing the precious little poster child for their gigantic graft scheme.”
- Anonymous
“I’m opposed to the voucher program, I campaigned against it, I voted against it, but my heart goes out to these people because to them that’s the only ray of hope they see”
- Allen Vaught, co-author of HB 130 voucher
This was a good move, Governor Perry – one that quite possibly avoided a huge class action discrimination suit from Texas parents of children with disabilities.
Raise Your Hand Texas/Vaught/Texas Parent PAC/Bill Ratliff/Mike Moses may have dropped some tears in their beers last night, but despite not getting this massive babysitting program, they still got their money.
“Perry wrote in his veto statement that the money would be better used to expand the number of children served in the existing program.
“Under the funding formula for the existing grant program, $25 million would serve more than 27,000 students over the next biennium, which is 21,000 students more than the estimated 6,800 students that would have been served under the bill’s proposed program – or a 305 percent increase,” Perry wrote.
But Patrick noted that the $25 million does not provide the districts the full amount needed to offer full-day classes, so the districts will still bear significant costs.
Even with the veto, those districts will get the money but the quality standards will not take effect.”
From the beginning HB 130 has been a bill that employed a selective voucher stance to push partisan politics. I don’t believe anyone has a problem with the HB 130 kids getting what they need, but not from the exact same legislators who scream about camel noses and vouchers whenever a private facility is accessed for kids with disabilities. Remember, private facilities are already publicly funded in the millions each year to warehouse the kids the system has failed.
You must stop using slick words to deny our children options while pushing your schemes.
An autism advocate asks more good questions of HB 130 supporters, state representatives, the press and even Governor Perry.
By Never enough
Jason Sabo of the United Way of Texas said “the research is clear that needy children greatly benefit from high-quality, full-day pre-kindergarten classes…We are making the conscious choice not to abide by what researchers tells us work.”
Mr. Sabo, why is it okay for our schools to individually make the conscious choice to ignore this research for students with disabilities, hire their attorney goons to make the above wildly discriminatory argument, and for our TEA hearing officers and judges accept it?
If a child with autism can’t prove his need for a full-day Pre-K program, what hope is there for the future of Texas? Where is the United Way when it comes to righting this wrong faced by the truly NEEDIEST Texas children every day?
IS ANYONE LISTENING OUT THERE? Rep. Patrick? Sen. Zaffirini? The United Way? RYHT? Ms. Alexander? Political News Reporters across the state?
Would ANY ONE OF YOU care to comment on this outrageously unbalanced public education system in Texas and the reality facing parents who are unable to prove their child’s need for full-day Pre-K despite all the research and BASIC government guidelines for this special population when required to fund a court battle to attempt it?
I have the same questions, and you have a massive audience of parents of children with disabilities waiting for meaningful answers.
Click here to read the full article at Statesman.com
