- Today in Austin, the Texas House Public Education Committee approved the bill (House Bill 3) that would create an education savings account program to help families use public money to pay for private schools. The measure was approved by the committee by a 9-6 vote. The bill will next go before the full Texas House of Representatives. The Texas Senate has already passed companion legislation. If approved by the House, the bill would then go to the desk of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who identified the creation of a school voucher-like program as a priority for this legislative session.
- The U.S. Dept. of Justice has dropped its corruption investigation of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The Associated Press reports the federal government decided to drop the case against Paxton while President Joe Biden was still in office. The outlet reports a senior agency official had concerns about their ability to secure a conviction. The federal probe stemmed from allegations by several of Paxton’s own employees, who accused him of abusing his office to help a campaign donor. Paxton was impeached based on these allegations, but ultimately beat the charges. The news is a big win for Paxton, who’s mulling an electoral challenge to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn.
