Listen as Nathan Exley, Jeremy Newman, David Huber, Ben Snodgrass, Trent Williams, and Paul Hastings share about the 2013 legislative session.

The post 2013 Texas Legislative Summary for Home Schoolers appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

As of May 18, SB 303 is officially dead. Your diligent phone calls paid off! SB 303 would have given the final authority for doctors to make certain end-of-life decisions for sick children. It would have empowered doctors to place “Do Not Attempt Resuscitation” orders into the files of sick children.

HB 1340 is also dead. That bill would have allowed 14-year-olds to consent to their own immunizations. In the Texas House of Representatives, our work forced the author to dramatically limit the scope of the bill. In the Senate, the bill did not have enough time to gain traction and died in committee.

HB 772: HB 772 would have recorded the immunization records of all Texas families unless the family opted-out of the system. Currently, Texas families have the opportunity to choose whether to include their immunization record information in the Texas immunization database. Those who opt out of the system, though, may be accused of abusing their children for not immunizing their children. The bill is set to die on May 22, 2013.

II. Good bills that passed away

Parental Rights Bill: In the Texas House of Representatives, our parental rights bill passed through committee and was placed on the last calendar day. When the time clock expired, our bill had still not yet been heard.

In the Senate: Chairman West of Dallas torpedoed our parental rights bill and also pulled life support from his own insidious bill, which would have abridged parental rights. Your overwhelming opposition to the bill prevented him from moving his own bill.

During the 2013 session, our parental rights bill made good progress. This session we were able to file the bill in both the House and the Senate. This session we faced the unique challenge of having a chairman directly oppose our bill.

Tim Tebow Bill: The bill passed the Senate but Chairman Jimmie Don Aycock of Killeen single-handedly blocked the passage of the bill. The chairman prevented the bill from coming up for a vote. The Tebow Bill has made more progress this session than it ever has before. Had we had a different chairman, the Tebow Bill likely would have passed.

The post Good bills, bad bills appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

When he asked me how I was, I said, “You tell me. Are you going to let our UIL bill out of committee?”

He then told me that HB 1374 (the House version of the bill) was dead, and I said yes, but SB 929 (the Senate version) was still available for a vote in his committee. When he told me that we did not have the votes, I said that was not my understanding, to which he responded that some did not want to vote on the bill. I told him he should tell them to “man up” and vote. He said he would not do that as chairman, which is a kind way of saying, “I’m not going to allow a vote on your bill.”

On Friday Representative James Frank, who has been working on this bill as if it were his own, asked the speaker of the House to speak to Aycock about the bill. Aycock then told Frank that he would allow a vote if I would give him a written document, on THSC letterhead with my signature, giving him credit for passing the bill out of his committee and assuring that THSC would not “retaliate” against any legislator who voted against the bill or “walked the vote in committee.” (“Walking the vote” is the practice of leaving during the vote to avoid registering a vote for or against a bill.) This was a tacit acknowledgment that we did indeed have enough votes to get the bill out of committee.

Although I was in San Antonio at a home school conference on Friday, we drafted the statement Aycock had given us and presented it to him. And although he was not happy, he moved to suspend the House rules to allow the Public Education Committee to meet that evening at 7 p.m. At the meeting, although a quorum was present, two of our supporters had already left town because the House was not in session on Saturday. No vote was taken because we were one vote short of the six votes needed. As some have noted, if Chairman Aycock had really wanted the bill to pass, he could have asked someone on the committee to vote “yes” just to get the bill to the floor. Obviously, he did not do so.

Saturday was the last day for a Senate bill to pass the Texas House. While time is slipping away, we still have a bill or two in the Senate that we could amend with our SB 929 language. Stay tuned. It ain’t over ‘til it’s over!

The post Oh So Close! appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

Some have questioned why THSC got involved in this issue, and others have even said it was not a home school issue at all. Our response is that the foundation of our home school freedom is the fundamental, constitutional right of parents to direct the care, control, and upbringing of their children. Any weakening or violation of that right strikes at the very heart of our home school freedom, and that is the reason we publicly opposed this bill. It would directly undermine the right of parents to make decisions for their children in certain situations where doctors and/or hospitals sought to overrule the parents.

It’s a short step from not allowing parents to make medical decisions for their children to not allowing them to make educational decisions.

Fortunately, the vast majority of the home school community clearly understood the risk and responded in a huge way. The House sponsor of SB 303 even told THSC representatives that doctors were better qualified than parents to make decisions for children in end-of-life situations because parents are “too emotionally involved.” We would never tolerate a policy that gave “educational professionals” instead of parents the right to make educational decisions, nor should we in the area of medical decisions. Home schoolers were seen as a key element of the coalition that killed this bill. Thank you for responding!

The post SB 303 Dead, Dead, Dead appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

The good news is the Family Law Foundation’s (FLF) bills to expand the number of families that could be sued under the Grandparent Access Statute also died. SB 1148, carried by Senator West, was effectively killed by overwhelming opposition from parents and families across Texas. Senator West sought a compromise proposed by FLF which was rejected by us because it would not only expand the number of families exposed to such lawsuits but would also require no “expert testimony” to prevail against the parents. HB 391, the House version of the FLF’s bill, died in the House Committee on Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence. Had THSC not been there to sound the alarm on these bills, they may well have passed, to the detriment of the fundamental constitutional right of parents.

While it is disappointing that we did not pass the TPRRA, we made significant progress this session. We had a Senate bill that we did not have last session and we had a hearing on the measures in both the House and Senate. We also had more witnesses testify than we did two years ago, and their testimonies had a dramatic impact. More and more legislators are becoming aware of the problem, and our support is growing. We will continue to work on this issue, re-file the bills next session, and educate legislative candidates on the issue during the next campaign season. Thank you for supporting our efforts with your prayers and finances.

The post Good News and Bad News on Parental Rights appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

The bill also enables doctors to decide when to remove life-sustaining treatment for sick children who are suffering through so much pain. Only families should make these critical end-of-life decisions.

Under Section 7, Section 166.046(e), artificially administered food and water can be withdrawn if the ethics committee decides that the treatment would: (3) “result in substantial irremediable physical pain or discomfort not outweighed by the benefit of the provision of the treatment.”

I. Status of the bill:

At the hearing on May 13, there was overwhelming opposition to SB 303 from the pro-life community. Although six times as many people came in opposition to the bill, the committee members are still poised to vote the bill through the committee on Wednesday, May 15.

UPDATE: Chairman Lois Kolkhorst is standing bravely against this abridgment of parental rights. If the chairman can continue to withstand political pressure until Saturday, May 18, then the bill will be dead. YOUR CALLS are making a difference!

Our best hope is to stop SB 303 now. The bill passed the Senate 24 – 6. If it passes the House committee, the bill is only one step away from becoming Texas law.

II. Intent of the bill:

SB 303 intends to protect patients by eliminating ambiguity about “secret DNR” orders, among other things. Current law is silent as to whether doctors can issue in-hospital DNR orders. Therefore, certain doctors have taken the liberty to issue “secret DNR” orders without informing the parents of the patients of this decision. We do not condone this behavior and would like to see it eliminated.

This bill attempts to eliminate such “secret DNR” orders. The bill takes a step forward by requiring that doctors inform most patients when a DNR order has been placed in their file. (Section 166.012 (c), page 2 lines 14-18)

However, SB 303 affords inadequate protection for the most vulnerable patients. Doctors are not required to inform patients whose deaths are considered “imminent” that a DNR order has been placed. (Section 166.012 (g), page 3 lines 15-21)

III. Problems with the bill:

The bill takes a shuffling step forward by trampling parental rights. We believe that a true solution will not usurp the authority of the family in the process.

1. Doctors are empowered to issue a DNR order against the desires of the patient and the patient’s family. (Section 166.012 (c), page 2 lines 14-18)
2. Only doctors can remove the DNR. Families can only appeal the death sentence to an “ethics committee” of doctors. Families, not doctors, should have the ultimate authority to remove DNR orders. (Section 166.012 (e), page 2 lines 25-27 – line 2 of page 3)
3. Doctors are completely immune from lawsuits resulting from DNR orders. (p.4 lines 5-11)
4. Doctors do not have to inform the patients whose death is “imminent” despite resuscitation of a DNR order being placed in their file. (Section 166.012 (g), page 3 lines 15-24)

We spoke with the house author, Representative Susan King, who told us that when a doctor and parents disagreed about the care of a sick child, the doctor’s opinion should prevail. In the words of Representative King, doctors practice “medicine based on their best judgment for the patient. So that’s the whole crux of this. If the physician believes that this in the best judgment of the patient and the family says ‘no, you’ll do what we say’” doctors should be able to contravene the opinion of families.

SB 303 is more concerned with upholding the medical judgment of doctors than with preserving the lives of sick children.

IV. Call Now: Oppose Doctor Death Sentences:

Your call will make the difference between the life and death of sick children. Doctors should not have the legal authority to place death orders in the files of sick children.

SB 303 would bring Terri Schiavo’s story to Texas. According to Terri Schiavo’s brother, SB 303 empowers doctors to arbitrarily decide if the patient’s continued “quality of life” justifies the continued use of life-sustaining treatment.

Chair: Lois Kolkhorst
lois.kolkhorst@house.state.tx.us
(512) 463-0600

Bobby Guerra
bobby.guerra@house.state.tx.us
(512) 463-0578

Nicole Collier
Nicole.Collier@house.state.tx.us
(512) 463-0716

Sarah Davis
sarah.davis@house.state.tx.us
(512) 463-0389

Rep. Susan King, author of SB 303
susan.king@house.state.tx.us
(512) 463-0718

Rep. Garnet Coleman
garnet.coleman@house.state.tx.us
(512) 463-0524

Rep. J.D. Sheffield
j.d.sheffield@house.state.tx.us
(512) 463-0628

The post Euthanizing Children appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

We spoke to Susan King, the House author of SB 303, who said that hospitals have better judgment than parents as to whether their child should continue to receive life-support treatment. This bill takes away the parents’ authority to make important healthcare decisions for their child and gives that authority to a doctor.

SB 303 grants doctors complete immunity from lawsuits from DNRs. Legal liability for DNR orders would hold the doctor responsible for their actions. Removing liability removes accountability.

Doesn’t the bill require notification before a DNR order is placed?
Doctors must give notification of a DNR order unless the patient’s death is considered “imminent,” but notification is not consent. Even if the doctor notifies the parent of the DNR, the parent can do NOTHING.

Can the hospital still remove artificially administered food and water?
Yes. SB 303 allows doctors to remove the artificially administered nutrition and hydration from a sick patient if the treatments: [Section 166.046(e)]

1. Hasten the patient’s death,
2. “Exacerbate other major medical problems not outweighed by the benefit of the provision of the treatment,”
3. “Result in substantial irremediable physical pain or discomfort not outweighed by the benefit of the provision of the treatment,” or
4. Are “Be medically ineffective in prolonging the patient’s life.”

Only the child’s family should have the authority to decide whether to withdraw the life-sustaining nutrition.

Are there beneficial aspects to the bill?
As with many controversial bills, SB 303 contains both positive and negative elements. For instance, the bill requires that a doctor give notice of a DNR order. Additionally, the bill extends the time that a patient has to transfer hospitals before life-sustaining treatment is withdrawn. Currently, a family has 10 days to transfer their child to another hospital. SB 303 extends the time clock to 21 days. However, the Texas Right to Life has helped 80 families through the transfer process and very few can complete the transfer process within 21 days.

Contact your Representative in opposition to this hospital euthanasia bill. Doctors should not have the power to issue death sentences in the form of Do Not Resuscitate orders against the will of the patient and the patient’s family.

For a comprehensive comparison of the bill with the current law, see: http://goo.gl/irwgF

TAKE ACTION:

The bill passed the Senate and will receive a hearing in the house committee on Monday, May 13, 2013. Please contact the following committee members in opposition to the bill:

Chair: Lois Kolkhorst
(512) 463-0600

Vice Chair: Elliot Naishtat
(512) 463-0668

Garnet Coleman
(512) 463-0524

Nicole Collier
(512) 463-0716

Philip Cortez
(512) 463-0269

Sarah Davis
(512) 463-0389

Bobby Guerra
(512) 463-0578

Susan King
(512) 463-0718

Jodie Laubenberg
(512) 463-0186

J.D. Sheffield
(512) 463-0628

Bill Zedler
(512) 463-0374

The post SB 303: Doctors of Death appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

Parental Rights Advance

If TPRRA does pass, people like Heather Wyatt won’t have to live in fear anymore. Heather Wyatt’s story starts with abuse and ends with abuse. It’s one of many examples of a victim being victimized because of loopholes in a law called the Grandparent Access Statute.

These loopholes in the law allow vindictive in-laws to force fit parents into financially devastating legal battles–legal battles over who will have possession of the fit parent’s children. (For more information, visit: thsc.org/tprra.)

THSC is determined to change the Grandparent Access Statute to give parents back the rights they once had. The TPRRA will:

• Force in-laws to back up their claims with evidence
• Remove a judge’s ability to use temporary orders in these cases because the children are not facing abuse (If the children were facing abuse, the in-laws would be filing under a different section of the law. If it was an emergency situation needing emergency orders, the in-laws should contact the police.)
• Require a higher standard of evidence to be used in these types of cases
• Require expert testimony
• Protect parental rights by changing other aspects of the law (read more about TPRRA)

The loopholes will not be closed, and parental rights will not be strengthened, if our parental rights bill is not passed! Call your representative and ask them to vote for HB 2547.

Contact Your State Representative:

1. Visit: Who Represents Me Directory
2. Enter your address.
3. Select your state representative.
4. Call him or her and ask them to vote in favor of HB 2547.

This may be our last chance until 2015 to protect parents and children from the Grandparent Access Statute! Make those calls and share this email with others.

The post Molested Child Still in Danger appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

As a non-attorney, it was a trying and, at some times, agonizing experience for me. Although both sides offered a good-will attempt to find something we could both agree upon, the TFLF would not accept our three major points of 1) restricting a judge’s discretion for temporary orders (since we are dealing with fit parents), 2) requiring a final hearing within 45 days, and 3) raising the standard of evidence from “preponderance” to “clear and convincing.” In turn, we would not accept their two major points of 1) increasing the number of situations in which grandparents could sue fit parents and 2) requiring no expert testimony to prove that denial of access or possession would significantly impair the physical health or emotional well-being of the child—something the current law requires.

In the last meeting with this group, the lobbyist for TFLF became very animated and claimed that we were being unreasonable by not accepting their proposal. He complained that we had been pursuing these changes for six years and that his plan had been for us to accept the “compromise” and to agree that we would not seek further changes in this statute for two legislatives sessions. He also strongly disapproved of our framing of this issue as one that is often between well-off grandparents against low-income families and single parents.

However, I find it interesting that in public hearings in the House and the Senate, proponents of our bill and opponents of their bill included parents and families who have been devastated by such lawsuits, while those giving testimony against TPRRA and for the TFLF bill were lawyers. That pretty much sums up this battle: parents and families against attorneys.

While SB 1194 is languishing in the Senate Jurisprudence Committee as a result of these talks, the House version, HB 2547, will be debated on the House floor on Thursday—or at least it will be on the House Calendar for that day, which is also the last day that a House bill can be voted out of the House.

Please call your state representative and ask him or her to vote for HB 2547 on Thursday. Tell them that a parent’s fundamental, constitutional right to direct the care, control, and upbringing of their children should not be limited to those who have enough money to defend that right against wealthy grandparents in court.

The post Lawyers vs Families appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

Loopholes in the Grandparent’s Access Statute allowed the judge to take Chassidie’s children away from her. The original intention of this law was to allow grandparents to sue for the right to visit their grandchildren. Now it is being used by in-laws to get much more than visitation. THSC is determined to remove these loopholes from the law. We have a bill in the Texas House of Representatives to do just that, but it is waiting to be heard on the House floor.

Our bill, Texas Parental Rights Restoration Act, would:

• Force in-laws to back up their claims with evidence.
• Remove the judge’s ability to use temporary orders in these cases because the children are not facing abuse. If the children were facing abuse, the in-laws would be filing under a different section of the law. If it was an emergency situation needing emergency orders, the in-laws should contact the police.
• Protect parental rights by changing other aspects of the law. Read more about TPRRA.

The Calendar Controls Our Fate

Calendars Committee sets the schedule for when a bill will be heard on the House floor. Not only could this committee delay our bill, they could decide not to schedule it at all!

Call Today (and Tomorrow)

Because of your calls, the Texas Parental Rights Restoration Act has made it this far. Use your influence to help this bill go the rest of the way to becoming law . . . before May 7th. According to the House rules, May 7th is the last day for a bill to be scheduled to go to the house floor by the Calendars Committee.

The members of the Calendars Committee will be at the Capitol today and tomorrow, so please call both days. Ask the representatives below to place HB 2547 on the calendar for a vote.

Calendar Committee

Chair: Rep. Todd Hunter
(512) 463-0672
hunter.todd@house.state.tx.us

Vice Chair: Rep. Eddie Lucio III
(512) 463-0606
eddie.lucio_iii@house.state.tx.us

Members:
Rep. Roberto Alonzo
(512) 463-0408
roberto.alonzo@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Carol Alvarado
(512) 463-0732
carol.alvarado@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Dan Branch
(512) 463-0367
dan.branch@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Angie Chen Button
(512) 463-0486
angie.button@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Byron Cook
(512) 463-0730
byron.cook@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Myra Crownover
(512) 463-0582
myra.crownover@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Sarah Davis
(512) 463-0389
sarah.davis@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Craig Eiland
(512) 463-0502
craig.eiland@house.state.tx.us

Rep. John Frullo
(512) 463-0676
john.frullo@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Charlie Geren
(512) 463-0610
charlie.geren@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Helen Giddings
(512) 463-0953
helen.giddings@house.state.tx.us

Rep. John Kuempel
(512) 463-0602
john.kuempel@house.state.tx.us

Rep. Doug Miller
(512) 463-0325
doug.miller@house.state.tx.us

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