School Choice in the Lone Star State
What to know: More than 150,000 families have already applied for Texas Education Freedom Accounts, the school choice program passed by the Legislature last year.
The TPPF take: High demand and participation show that Texas families want more freedom.
“The sheer volume of applications in such a short period shows many Texas parents feel constrained by the options offered in the current public school system and are eager for alternatives,” says TPPF’s Brian Phillips. “That urgency reflects frustrations on multiple fronts, from class sizes and academic rigor to disciplinary culture and school safety. Given this demand, it’s highly likely that the Texas Legislature will need to revisit TEFA’s funding and enrollment limits when lawmakers convene next year.”
For more on TEFAs, click here.
Danger!
What to know: The first lawsuits have been filed over the Trump administration’s revocation of the EPA’s “endangerment finding,” which the agency used as a pretext to regulate greenhouse gases.
The TPPF take: That endangerment finding became the legal foundation for a cascade of sweeping regulations touching nearly every sector of the American economy.
“The costs of the EPA’s regulations are enormous but are often unaccounted for and hidden from everyday consumers,” says TPPF’s Brent Bennett. “The regulations built on the Endangerment Finding imposed billions in compliance burdens across mining, manufacturing, transportation, construction, agriculture, and energy production — driving up prices for consumers and constraining the affordable, reliable energy that American families and businesses depend on.”
For more on the endangerment finding, click here.
With Good Reason?
What to know: Most Americans are wary of driverless cars, a new study shows.
The TPPF take: Just as with all other technology, self-driving vehicles are a tool that can induce positive and negative outcomes.
“As a first principle, and for the sake of innovation broadly, it is crucial that Texas continue to hold the line on the regulation-heavy instincts of states like California and Illinois,” says TPPF’s David Dunmoyer. “With responsible guardrails in place and the ingredients for an innovative hotspot, Texas will continue to lead the nation as the exemplar of responsible technology that seeks to serve humanity, and not the other way around.”
For more on the self-driving cars, click here.