Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on school safety bill passed by Senate
AUSTIN (CBSNewsTexas.com) – The Texas Senate passed its school security bill, SB 11, unanimously Wednesday afternoon, 31-0.
The vote came nearly one year after a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde.
After the Uvalde tragedy, Governor Greg Abbott ordered new safety audits at each school campus, and those provisions would now become a part of the state law.
The legislation would also give the Texas Education Agency new authority to make sure school districts are complying with the regulations.
In an interview with CBS News Texas, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick said parents and educators need to do their part. "We don't have 1,000 inspectors to go to every school, so they have to use the funding wisely as we recommend. And we will, the TEA will hold them accountable. Every superintendent, every principal, every teacher wants to their very best to save and protect their children, but we have to take this seriously."
He said like the House, the Senate's bill increases the amount of money spent on school security from $600 million to about $1.5 billion during the next two-year budget.
The House has scheduled its two school security bills, HB 3 and HB 13, to be debated Monday.
School security is one of the Senate's top 30 priorities, and the Lt. Governor said most will have passed the Senate this week.
But will they pass the House before the legislative session ends Memorial Day weekend?
Patrick said, "I am concerned the clock will run out on getting them all accomplished. But I just don't know which ones may not make the deadline."
Regarding another priority, the Lt. Governor praised Governor Abbott's statewide tour, including a stop at Nolan Catholic High School in Fort Worth Wednesday afternoon, to push for school choice and taxpayer-funded savings accounts for some public school students to attend private schools.
The Senate approved its bill earlier this month, but the House passed an amendment in its budget that no tax dollars will be used for what critics call school vouchers.
Still, Patrick said he isn't giving up on the House. "I'm very optimistic, more than I've ever been in the House that we may get a school choice bill out from them. I don't know what it will look like. We'll have to go to conference and work it out. But I'm optimistic because that vote when you look at the technical side of the vote, it's much closer to happening than ever before. But we'll see what happens."