Texas 2036 Policy Advisor Mitrah Avini thanked lawmakers in testimony last Thursday before the Senate Finance Committee for considering a request to make an additional appropriation to the Space Exploration and Aeronautics Research Fund (SEARF), the $150 million trust managed by the Texas Space Commission. The fund, which was created along with the Texas Space…
2024 was a year of continued progress for the telecommunications industry in Texas, and the state finally received federal approval for its broadband plan. But it was also an exceptionally exciting year for emerging industries such as space, which saw the launch of the Texas Space Commission. Here are six articles that recap the year:…
What is the RSIZ? The Rural Schools Innovation Zone (RSIZ) is a nonprofit organization that oversees a regional partnership begun among three school districts in South Texas: Freer Independent School District (ISD), Premont ISD, and Brooks County ISD. In 2023, the RSIZ expanded to include two new school districts: Agua Dulce ISD and Benavides ISD….
Braided funding involves combining two or more sources (or “streams”) of funding to support a single program or activity. With braided funding, programs combine funds from multiple sources to support a single purpose, but the individual funding streams that are braided together maintain their separate identities and reporting requirements. Managing braided funding therefore requires administrative…
In 2023, the Texas Legislature adopted Budget Rider 51 as part of its biennial statewide budget, directing the Tri-Agency Workforce Initiative to identify funds that may be streamlined and coordinated to increase the availability of work-based learning (WBL) and apprenticeship programs. As directed by the rider, on Aug. 31, 2024, the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC),…
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced the launch of the Texas Space Commission today during a visit to the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Abbott was joined by NASA’s JSC Director Vanessa Wyche, Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, and state Rep. Greg Bonnen, R-Friendswood, the author of the bill that established the Texas Space Commission. …