Rulemaking: How Agencies Change the Rules of the Game Intersect Ed

Today, we’re talking about a big change that’s about to wallop Texas school districts. At the end of September, as lawmakers approach an anticipated special session this fall on private school vouchers, about one out of every four public school campuses will see the letter grade that marks their performance in the state’s A-F accountability system drop. What’s happening now with the rollout of new standards was not directed by the Legislature, it is an agency (Texas Education Agency) level decision. And to understand how we got to this point, we have to take a trip to the opaque world of agency rulemaking.