136 days remain in the 87th Regular Legislative Session.

The 87th Legislative Session is underway and opening day offered very few surprises. Dade Phelan was elected as Speaker of the Texas House, and Senator Bryan Birdwell was elected as the President Pro Tempore of the Texas Senate.

The members of both chambers adopted the rules that will govern their operations during the legislative session that will be conducted during a pandemic.

There are some differences between the House and Senate, but by and large, if anyone wishes to offer public testimony during the legislative session, that has to be done the old-fashioned way (in person at the Capitol). While some invited witnesses may be able to testify remotely, that isn't an option for public testimony. To testify in the Senate, COVID testing will be required. The House doesn't have that same requirement, but you can certainly expect to wear a mask and all hearing notices will include details and instructions regarding the requirements intended to promote health and safety. You can read more about those rules here.

The big news in the Senate regarding their rules is that there are now only 18 (five-ninths) required to suspend the regular order of business to take up and consider bills. That number was changed to coincide with the number of Republicans in the upper-chamber so that Democrats could not block a piece of legislation purely along part lines. Those of you who have been following the Senate for a while may remember when this rule was once the "two-thirds rule."

For now, we can expect it to fairly quiet inside the Capitol next week. Both chambers stand adjourned until January 26.

What we know about the possible extension of provisions to hold districts harmless for the enrollment decline experienced during the pandemic is that it is, well...on hold for now. At this time, the hold harmless provisions only apply to the first semester of the 2020-21 school year.

With the Legislature now in session, leaders in the executive branch who have been making such decisions seem to want to consult legislative leaders about a possible extension. We could know more once the base budget and supplemental budget bills are filed (we expect those next week if things go as planned). But it seems more likely that it may take until February before more information is available on this topic.

What we do know at this time is that enrollment decline is real, especially in the early grades.

There are many Texans who have suffered during this pandemic and economic recession. Some have suggested that just as some citizens have had to cut back on spending, that the State and schools should cut back on spending as well.

However, even with these limited resources, it is critical that legislators continue to make investments in public education. You can view these points to help explain why now is not the time to shortchange students.

Earlier this week, we we distributed a message with information about the Biennial Revenue Estimate from the Comptroller. If you missed that message, you can access it here. And did you know that that you can access a copy of all our previous communications to members in the Members Area of our website? Your email address and the password you establish grant you access to that page. If you forgot or don't know your password, you can reset it at any time.