Good morning – 

School districts are thumbing their noses at Gov. Greg Abbott’s orders by reimposing mask mandates on kids. That story gets covered in the Texas Minute, and is the basis for our One Click Survey.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Tuesday, August 10, 2021
Modify your email preferences.

Senate Cruises… House (Still) Snoozes

• In what has become an all-to-familiar routine, the GOP-controlled Texas Senate has gone speedily to work passing the special session agenda items set forth by Gov. Abbott… while the GOP-controlled Texas House has done absolutely nothing.
   
• Not only has the Senate moved to pass yet again – or is that re-pass? pass a third time-plus? – the various items on the agenda, but they also took up a measure redefining the state’s constitutional quorum requirements. 
      
• On Monday, the Senate Special Committee on Constitutional Issues unanimously approved a proposed constitutional amendment that, if adopted by Texas voters, would change the legislative quorum requirements from two-thirds to a simple majority. Jeramy Kitchen was watching the Senate for you.
     
• This comes, of course, as a result of the House Democrats killing legislation by denying an operating quorum in the chamber.
   
• On the other side of the chamber, the third day of the second special session came and went yesterday with House Speaker Dade Phelan and the Republican majority unable or unwilling to compel enough Democrats to be in the House chamber. Brandon Waltens has the details.

• After waiting for more than two hours yesterday for members to return to the chamber, State Rep. Tony Tinderholt (R–Arlington) motioned for a “call of the House,” locking the doors and directing the House Sergeant-at-Arms to send for absent members. After a short wait, Speaker Phelan issued permission slips and let the House members leave for the evening; they will reconvene at 4 p.m. today.
       

• Meanwhile, State Rep. Bryan Slaton (R–Royse City) attempted to ask Speaker Dade Phelan how many arrest warrants will be issued, since only one had been issued during the previous special session. Phelan did not acknowledge Slaton’s repeated questions.

Schools Back With Masks

• Despite Gov. Abbott’s prohibition on mask mandates, some school districts in Texas are imposing them on students anyway. Jacob Asmussen reports the Dallas Independent School District, Houston ISD, and Austin ISD are among those flagrantly disregarding the governor’s order.
     
• “There’s no scientific rationale or logic to have children wear masks in schools,” according to Stanford University’s Dr. Scott Atlas, who reviewed the mask mandate evidence from numerous counties, states, and countries. “There’s no evidence that a mask mandate was effective in stopping the cases from spreading.”
      
• Gov. Abbott made headlines earlier this summer with an executive order that, among other things, stated that if local officials tried to extort citizens into vaccines or masks, they would be “subject to a fine up to $1,000.”
       
• Neither Abbott nor his office have yet to publicly comment on the local school officials’ recent actions ignoring his order.
     
• In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis is protecting parents’ right to decide if their child wears a mask to school, and even threatening to withhold public money from schools that violate his mask mandate ban. 

Eliminating Property Taxes

• Legislation filed in the Texas House by Tom Oliverson (R–Cypress) would bring the school “maintenance and operations” taxes to zero by using surplus monies in the state coffers. The school “M&O” tax represents 50 percent or more of the average Texan’s property tax bill. Jeramy Kitchen has the details.
      
• Oliverson’s measure would allocate 90 percent of surplus funds now and moving forward to “buy down” school district maintenance and operation property taxes until they reach zero. This would eliminate the tax without imposing any new or expanded taxes.
      
• “Texans want a lower property tax bill, and our goal is to eliminate it as fast as possible,” said economist Vance Ginn of the Texas Public Policy Foundation.
      
• Texas has the sixth highest property tax burden in the nation. Of the nine states without income taxes, Texas has the second highest property taxes.

• Rep. Oliverson’s measure does one very important thing. Right now, proposals for new state spending are measured only against “does the state treasury have the cash.” This proposal would force future state spending to be measured against ongoing property tax relief for Texas families. 

Health Care Workers Protest COVID Jab

• Texans working in the healthcare sector took to the streets in the Metroplex protesting COVID-19 “vaccine” requirements from their employers. Robert Montoya has the story.
   
• “You’re a tyrant if you tell somebody, ‘You take this, or you don’t work here anymore,’” said Kelly Burke in Dallas. “You’re a tyrant if you tell somebody, ‘Take this vaccination, or stay away from me.’”

ONE CLICK SURVEY

Should Texas school districts be allowed to mandate that children wear masks?
    

Once you’ve clicked an answer, reply to this email with any thoughts you’d like to share!