Bill

HB 4509

87(R) - 2021
House Public Education
Senate Education
House Public Education
Senate Education
Public Education

Companion Bill

SB 2026

Contact the Author

Greg Bonnen

Phone:

512-463-0729

Capitol Office:

E2.504

Email:

Vote Recommendation

Yes
  • Neutral
  • Neutral
  • Neutral
  • Positive
  • Neutral

Author(s)

Greg Bonnen

Co-Author(s)

Steve Allison
Kyle Biedermann
Phil King
Mayes Middleton
David Spiller
Terry Wilson

Sponsor(s)

Larry Taylor

Bill Caption

Relating to instruction in informed patriotism in public schools.

Fiscal Notes

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated. 

Bill Analysis

HB 4509 would prioritize the cultivation in public school students of an informed American patriotism and lead students in a close study of the founding documents of the United States and Texas.

To that end HB 4509 would require as essential knowledge for the social studies curriculum, the fundamental moral, political, and intellectual foundations of the American experiment in self-government, as well as the history, qualities, traditions, and features of civics in the United States, the structure, function, and processes of government institutions at the federal, state, and local levels, and the Founding documents of the United States, including the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, the Federalist Papers, excerpts from Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, the first Lincoln-Douglas debate, the writings of the Founding Fathers of the United States, and selected works by Frederick Douglass and Martin Luther King Jr.

Vote Recommendation Notes

Texas Action supports HB 4509 on the principles of limited government and individual liberty. The curriculum proposed by this legislation would help equip Texas students with valuable knowledge and understanding of the philosophical origins of the United States, and a better understanding of our form of government and the purposes behind it. This essential civics curriculum is foundational to fulfilling the mission of providing quality education to Texas students. 

Contact the Author

Greg Bonnen

Phone:

512-463-0729

Capitol Office:

E2.504

Email: