- Texas has moved one step closer to adopting a school voucher program. After 9 hours of debate — the Texas House approved a bill to create an Education Savings Account plan. The program would allow parents to use public funds towards private school tuition. The proposal now needs one more procedural vote from the full chamber before heading over to the Senate where lawmakers will be able to decide whether to accept the bill as written and send it to Gov. Abbott or reject the changes and call for a conference committee where both chambers will meet to work out their differences.
- The City of Commerce will host a candidate forum Thursday evening presenting those running for local office in the May election. Commerce Mayor Teddy Reel is running for re-election. That office will be contested by Coy Smith. The Commerce Independent School District will have one contested place on the Commerce ISD Board of Trustees. Abbie Harper and Henry Ross are both running for Place 3 on the school board. All four candidates will take questions in a public forum that will take place in the Commerce City Council chamber, located in the municipal complex at 1119 Alamo Street. Doors open at 6:00 p.m., with the forum scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. The event will be broadcast live on KETR. Two Commerce ISD incumbent board members are running unopposed for re-election. Place 2’s Tamara Beadles and Place 1 trustee and current board president Kathleen Hooten have no opposition. There are no Commerce City Council seats on this spring’s ballots. The election will be held on Saturday, May 3.
