Conservatives unite for education reform

In an unexpected political shift, conservative Texans have rallied behind Democratic Rep. Gina Hinojosa’s House Bill 5419, aimed at downsizing the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and reallocating funds to public schools. Hinojosa described the bill as a “zero-based budgeting bill to cut through the nonsense and the bureaucracy,” emphasizing the need to prioritize teacher pay and school safety. Critics, including Lynn Davenport, highlighted the TEA’s growing bureaucracy and questioned its effectiveness. The bill proposes an expedited audit of TEA contracts and mandates prioritizing public school funding. Chandra Villanueva from Every Texan noted the importance of transparency in education funding, while Suzanne Bellsnyder highlighted the crisis in rural schools.