San Antonio Standard

A former Democratic state senator has gone on record that he is in support of parental empowerment and school choice legislation.

According to retired Sen. Eddie Lucio's (D-Brownsville) opinion piece in the Corpus Christi Caller Times, he highlights the importance of caring for neighbors, especially in terms of education. Lucio said he believes parents are the logical choice to determine what their children need and therefore should be empowered to choose the schools they attend.

He argues that the Texas school system does not meet the needs of all children, and as leaders, lawmakers need to respond to the calls for help from parents. Lucio also emphasizes the importance of faith in making difficult decisions and doing what is right, regardless of political consequences.

"Our school system does not meet the needs of every child ... I stand for parent empowerment," Lucio said.

Lucio praises Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick for supporting this school choice vision and making it a priority this legislative session. Lucio said he believes the measure toward education would make Texas the best in the country, with "strong, healthy and educated" children. He acknowledges that this will not be an easy journey and that lawmakers will face pressure from "special interest groups.” Therefore, it is essential to support and encourage them to prioritize the needs of the children and parents in their state.

"We must help them [lawmakers] to care about the students stuck in failing schools," Lucio said. "We must help them to care about the students whose moral compass is being distorted by ideology at odds with their upbringing. We must help them to care about the parents crying out to us, the leaders of this state, for help.”

According to Fox News, there are a number of school choice options being proposed by lawmakers in Texas. Gov. Greg Abbott has supported education savings accounts, a form of school choice that grants certain funds in accounts that parents can use for schooling, tutoring, and outside resources such as transportation expenses or uniforms. Abbott supports a proposal, Senate Bill 8, which would offer families $8,000 per student in an education savings account that could be used to pay for approved private school tuition.

The bill also would require districts to upload their lesson plans to an online portal, where parents could see the learning materials and restrict schools from teaching certain topics that are deemed "not age-appropriate." 

Critics of the legislation are concerned that the law would take money from the public school system, leading to a reduction in enrollment and funding. However, Abbott claims these charges are false, saying "wherever school choice is used, public education improves" at an Austin parent empowerment rally. 

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has released a legal opinion stating that education savings accounts are legal and the legislation is one of several bills that will go before the Texas Senate Committee on Education.