Public Policy in Texas

1
Chapter 12
Public Policy in Texas
2
Education Policy in Texas

• Debate over Texas public education extends back
  to period when Texas was part of Mexico.
• Republic of Texas Constitution requires public
  education system legislature adopts one 1854
• Constitution of 1876 established the Permanent
  School Fund, specifies funding guidelines.
• Public education policy was left to local school
  districts until the 1940s
• State legislature attempted to address problems
  associated with public school funding and
  facilities.

3
Education Policy in Texas

• State Board of Education
• 15 members, 4-year terms
• Oversees the Permanent School Fund
• Executes the education budget
• Nominates commissioner of education
• Purchases textbooks and shapes what is in them
• Curriculum, content, and materials covered in
  books reflects what the SBOE wantsTexas is a
  huge market for companies selling textbooks and
  testing services
• Sets education standards for students and schools

4
Education Policy in Texas

• Three issues have shaped Texas public
• educational policy over the last fifty years
• Desegregation
• Equity in public school funding
• Search for educational excellence
• How to measure and demonstrate
• High stakes testing

5
Education Policy in Texas Segregation

• Texas Constitution called for segregation
• Black students had fewer school days,
• One-third less funding than white students
• State legislature passed a resolution in 1957
  opposing Brown v. Board (1954) decision
  desegregating public schools.
• Many districts are still de facto segregated by
  residence patterns

6
Education Policy in TexasFunding

• San Antonio ISD v. Rodriguez landmark case
  addressed equity in public school funding
• 1971, Texas school finance system ruled
  unconstitutional
• Violated 14th Amendment equal protection clause.
• Overturned on appeal by the U.S. Supreme Court.

7
Education Policy in TexasFunding

• Edgewood ISD v. Kirby (1989)
• State Supreme Court declares existing funding
  system in violation of state constitution
• Funding public school districts with local
  property taxes violated Texas equal protection
  and efficient systems clauses
• Vast differences in property values from one
  school district to another produced an unequal
  system of school funding

8
Education Policy in TexasFunding

• Robin Hood funding system emerged as a result
  of the Edgewood decision
• Property wealthy districts share their local tax
  revenue with poor districts
• Wealthy districts pay wealth equalization share
  of their local property taxes back to the state
• The state redistributes funds to poor districts
• Poor districts retain their local property tax
  dollars and receive additional funds the state
  collects from the wealthy districts

9
Education Policy in TexasFunding

• Robin Hood system remains in place today
• Texas has 1,265 school districts
• As of September 2012, 374 districts designated by
  state as property wealthy
• First year of program, only 35 in that category

10
Education Policy in Texas Educational Excellence

• Education Reform in 1980s
• Select Committee on Public Education (SCOPE)
• Made 140 recommendations
• Centralized state control over education
• Education Reform in 1990s
• Students in low-performing schools have some
  ability to move out of them
• Gov. Bush lead effort, foundations of NCLB

11
Education Policy in Texas Educational Excellence

• Twenty years after reforms, mixed results
• Dropout rates declined
• Controversy remains about how these data are
  derived
• Scores on standardized tests rose
• Controversy remains about curriculum and daily
  classroom effort driven by state testing
• 2011 state legislature budget cuts to education
  may jeopardize many of the reform initiatives of
  the previous 20 years.

12
Welfare Policy in Texas

• Poverty in Texas
• 18 of Texans (over 4 million) in poverty (2011)
• Compared to 15 national average
• Federal Poverty Guidelines 2012
• Income of 11,170 for an individual
• 3,960 for each additional household member
• This means individuals earning 935/month are
  not, by legal definition poor.
• 58 of poor households are employed

13
Welfare Policy

• Most major state welfare programs are cooperative
  using federal matching funds
• Medicaid medical care for the poor
• TANF welfare
• income assistance, medial and social services
• Public Housing Section 7 vouchers
• School meals and SNAP (Lone Star Card)

14
Welfare Policy

• Temporary Aid to Needy Families
• Temporary limited to 36 months (3 years)
• Not more than 5 years over a lifetime
• Aid Types Income, child care, social services
• Often vouchers or direct agreements with
  providers, less direct cash payments since
  Clinton Era Welfare Reforms
• Needy Must be near poverty
• Families Must be children in household
• Adults must be caring for young children, working
  or in school/job training

15
Medicaid and Health CarePolicy

• Medicaid health insurance for poor, disabled, or
  otherwise needing financial assistance
• Evidence required demonstrating disability or
  inability to pay for private health insurance
• Joint state-federal program established under the
  Social Security Amendments of 1965
• Requires Texas (all states) follow certain
  principles and meet set standards to receive
  federal funds.
• Not to be confused with Medicare, a federal
  contribution health care program for the elderly.
  

16
Medicaid and Health CarePolicy

• Medicaid began as narrowly defined targeting
  people on public assistance
• Today Medicaid is large, complex insurance
  program serving many identified groups including
• adults not fully covered by Medicare
• people with disabilities
• individuals receiving TANF and SSI
• Impoverished children

17
Texas Medicaid Recipientsby Age and Ethnicity
18
Distribution of MedicalPayments by
EnrollmentGroup in Texas
19
Distribution of MedicaidSpending by Service in
Texas
20
Medicaid and Health CarePolicy

• Texas administers Medicaid through the Texas
  Health and Human Services Commission
• The federal government monitors the state
  Medicaid program
• The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid in the
  Department of Health and Human Services
• Establish what constitutes basic services, and
  set delivery, quality, funding, and eligibility
  standards.

21
Average Annual Growth inMedicaid
Spending,1990-2010
22
ACA and Texas Health CarePolicy

• In 2010, Congress passed two bills known as the
  Affordable Care Act (ACA), often referred to as
  Obamacare.
• The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
• The Health Care and Reconciliation Act of 2010
• Two key provisions for states to implement
• State Health Care Exchanges
• Expand Medicare

23
Medicaid and Health CarePolicy

• State Health benefit Exchanges
• Assist in accessing affordable health insurance
• Texas (among other states) has indicated the
  state will not establish a state health exchange
• The federal government will run exchanges in
  states that choose not to set up their own system

24
Medicaid and Health CarePolicy

• Governor Perry also rejects expanding Medicaid
  provision of ACH
• Opposes expanding government and the state
  absorbing more program responsibilities
• The Texas Legislature and/or future Texas
  government administrations may compromise on the
  exchanges and Medicaid provisions
• Rejecting Medicaid means Texas does not receive
  millions in federal dollars

25
Water Policy

• Access to water is necessary for a thriving
  economy and expanding population
• Texass water consumption projected to increase
  by 82 in next 50 years.
• A statewide water policy is difficult because of
  the diverse climates within the state
• Floods and droughts simultaneously occur in Texas

26
Water Usage by Sector
27
Water Policy

• Private property rights make Texas water policy
  even more complicated.
• Spanish law, traditional English common law, and
  statutory law
• Texas law recognizes several legal classes of
  water rights governed by different rules
• For example laws governing surface water and
  ground water, for example, sharply differ.

28
Water Policy

• The Texas Water Development Board
• Primary water planning and financing state agency
• Several more local and state government agencies
  and boards oversee water policy and planning
• Drainage districts
• Conservation and reclamation districts
• River authorities
• Water and control improvement districts