The child advocacy nonprofit Children at Risk says 11 bills it drafted passed in the 89th legislature and were then signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.
The organization鈥檚 president and CEO, Bob Sanborn, said in a virtual press conference Thursday that months of preparation and hard work paid off last session 鈥� including funds in the state budget for childcare scholarships.
鈥淔or the first time in the history of Texas,鈥� said Sanborn, 鈥渨e have allocated a hundred million dollars to subsidizing childcare for families in Texas."
Sanborn said his group advocates not only for children but for working families. Andrea Coker, with the North Texas Commission, said that鈥檚 what makes the $100 million so important 鈥� because childcare is a workforce and business issue.
鈥淥ur businesses here in Texas need families to have childcare options,鈥� Coker said. 鈥淭hey need them to be affordable because they need to go to work. There are openings in the workforce right now that are not filled because people who could take those jobs don't have childcare options.鈥�
Sanborn also praised the massive , an $8.5 billion education bill that鈥檒l fund teacher pay raises, pre-k, special education and other education efforts.
Another piece of legislation, Senate Bill 991, address students who are chronically absent, said Children at Risk鈥檚 Chief Government Affairs Officer Mandi Kimball.
鈥淭he legislature really prioritized this population to put in strategies and try to prevent children and students from falling behind,鈥� she said.
She said other bills will help protect students from sexual exploitation, including House Bill 451, which requires child Protective Services and the juvenile justice system to screen for at-risk kids.
鈥淭his is extremely important because we know that this is a vulnerable population that many are taking advantage of,鈥� she said.
She said the governor also signed Senate Bill 2167 that targets illicit massage businesses, which, said Kimball, can be fronts for human trafficking.
But, Children at Risk saw some losses, too: Sanborn grouped the 89th session into 鈥渢he good, the bad and the ugly.鈥� The 鈥渂ad,鈥� he said, included Education Savings Accounts, which will send $1 billion in public funds to private schools. The nonprofit opposed Senate Bill 2.
The 鈥渦gly,鈥� Sanborn said, was Abbott鈥檚 line-item veto of the $60 million summer EBT program included in the state鈥檚 budget.
鈥淭o have this pass the house, pass the senate, and then have the governor veto it was really quite ugly,鈥� said Sanborn.
Abbott cited uncertainty over federal matching funds and said once there鈥檚 more clarity over the program, the legislature can 鈥渞econsider funding this item.鈥�
Now, Children at Risk will get ready for Abbott鈥檚 special legislative session, set for July 21.
Bill Zeeble is 四虎影院鈥檚 education reporter. Got a tip? Email Bill at bzeeble@kera.org. You can follow him on X .
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