Texas House Public Education Committee: Superintendent Salaries....

Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.”
1 Corinthians 15:33

Now that the Texas House's committee assignments are out it's worth asking...just how much are the Public Education committee members' local ISD superintendents making?!?

[Note on Methodology I: ISD listings are taken from the "school districts" tab on the member's House website; Salary information is taken from the Texas Education Agency's "Superintendent Salary Reports" page.]

[Note on Methodology II: Texas Education Agency data only covers base salary.  Determining total compensation would require a time consuming series of open records requests.  Thus, all numbers in this post is are low-balls.]

[Note on Methodology III: Texas Education Agency data is current as of October 2015.  As you will see, a number of school districts have hired new superintendents since then.  Where data is easy to find, we've included a time frame of when the current superintendent came on board...but it's not always easy to find.]

Chairman Dan Huberty: $229,308 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $36,328)

• Aldine ISD Superintendent Wanda Bamberg: $278,622

• Huffman ISD Superintendent Benny Soileau: $141,200

• Humble ISD Previous Superintendent: $268,470
• Note: Humble ISD hired a new supt. this past summer.

• New Caney ISD Superintendent Kenn Franklin: $231,750

• Spring ISD Superintendent Rodney Watson: $229,500

Vice Chairman Diego Bernal: $276,923 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $21,524)

• Alamo Heights ISD Superintendent Kevin Brown: $242,050
• Note: Learn more about Kevin Brown here and here.

• North East ISD Superintendent Brian Gottardy: $278,610

• Northside ISD Superintendent Brian Woods: $307,036

• San Antonio ISD Superintendent Pedro Martinez: $279,999
• Note: Learn more about San Antonio ISD here.

Alma Allen: $306,060 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $17,391)

• Alief ISD Superintendent HD Chambers: $312,120

• Houston ISD Superintendent Previous Superintendent: $300,000
• Note: Houston ISD hired a new supt. this past summer. 

• Allen's district includes slivers of two other ISDs, they're too small a percentage of her total district to be worth including in this calculation.

Dwanye Bohac: $330,191 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $28,495)

• Cypress-Fairbanks ISD Superintendent John Henry: $383,402
• Note: Learn more about Cy-Fair ISD here.

• Katy ISD Superintendent Lance Hindt: $322,171
• Note: Learn more about Katy ISD here.

• Spring Branch ISD Superintendent Scott Muri: $285,000

Joe Deshotel: $178,269 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $20,706)

• Beaumont ISD Superintendent John Frossard: $261,000
• Note: Learn more about Beaumont ISD here.

• Hamshire-Fannett ISD Previous Superintendent: $119,351
• Note: Hamshire-Fannett's superintendent recently resigned and a successor has yet to be named.

• Nederland ISD Previous Superintendent: $129,724
• Note: Nederland ISD hired a new supt. last spring.

• Port Arthur ISD Superintendent Mark Porterie: $203,000

• Deshotel's district includes slivers of two other ISD's, but they're too small a percentage of the district to include in the total.

Harold Dutton: $240,611 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $19,867)

• Aldine ISD: See Huberty Above

• Channelview ISD Superintendent Greg Ollis: $221,490

• Crosby ISD Superintendent Keith Moore: $215,630

• Galena Park ISD Superintendent Angi Williams: $270,531

• Houston ISD: See Allen Above.

• Humble ISD: See Huberty Above.

• Sheldon ISD Previous Superintendent: $129,540
• Note: Sheldon ISD hired a new supt. in late 2015.

Lance Gooden: $144,431 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $23,758)

• Athens ISD Superintendent Blake Stiles: $138,900

• Brownsboro ISD Previous Superintendent: $140,712

• Crandall ISD Superintendent Robert Jolly: $139,720

• Eustace ISD Superintendent Coy Holcombe: $146,000

• Forney ISD Superintendent Suzanne McWilliams: $194,425

• Frankston ISD Previous Superintendent: $116,800
• Note: Frankston ISD recently hired a new supt.

• Kaufman ISD Superintendent Lori Blaylock: $154,088

• Kemp ISD Superintendent Phil Edwards: $196,614

• Layponor ISD Previous Superintendent: $89,000 
• Note: Layponor ISD recently hired a new supt.

• Mabank ISD Superintendent Russell Marshall: $210,283

• Malakoff ISD Superintendent Randy Perry: $113,414

• Murchison ISD Superintendent Richard Jones: $83,166

• Scurry Rosser ISD Previous Superintendent: $120,000

• Terrell ISD Superintendent Michael French: $220,500

• Willis Point ISD Previous Superintendent: $102,840

• Gooden's district includes slivers of four other ISD's, but they're too small a percentage to include in the district total.

Ken King: $101,622 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $21,338)

• Abernathy ISD Superintendent Glen Teal: $120,000

• Amherst ISD Superintendent Joel Rodgers: $89,963

• Anton ISD Previous Superintendent: $110,407

• Booker ISD Previous Superintendent: $105,170

• Canadian ISD Superintendent Kyle Lynch: $140,550

• Clarendon ISD Superintendent Mike Norell: $100,000

• Claude ISD Previous Superintendent: $96,710

• Cotton Center ISD Previous Superintendent: $93,738

• Darrouzett ISD Previous Superintendent: $86,000

• Denver City ISD Gary Davis: $115,500

• Dimmit ISD Superintendent Bryan Davis: $131,500

• Folett ISD Superintendent Gary Auld: $104,708

• Grandview-Hopkins ISD Superintendent John Wilson: $126,000

• Groom ISD Superintendent Jay Lamb: $78,650

• Gruver ISD Superintendent Troy Seagler: $97,500

• Hale Center ISD Previous Superintendent: $71,500

• Happy ISD Superintendent Wade Wesley: $85,000

• Hart ISD Superintendent Kenneth Rosser: $85,000

• Hedley ISD Superintendent Colby Waldorp: $75,000

• Hereford ISD Previous Superintendent: $160,000

• Higgins ISD Superintendent Steve James: $97,490

• Kress ISD Superintendent Doug Setliff: $88,500

• Lefors ISD Superintendent Joe Waldron: $87,550

• Levelland ISD Superintendent Jeff Northern: $132,000

• Littlefield ISD Superintendent Robert Dillard: $148,143

• McLean ISD Previous Superintendent: $83,200

• Miami ISD Superintendent Donna Gill: $91,750

• Morton ISD Superintendent Vicki Rice: $88,700

• Muleshoe ISD Superintendent Richie Richards: $157,290

• Nazareth ISD Superintendent Glen Waldo: $87,000

• Olton ISD Superintendent Bub McIver: $98,500

• Pampa ISD Superintendent Tanya Larkin: $105,404

• Perryton ISD Superintendent Robert Hall: $132,500

• Petersburg ISD Previous Superintendent: $96,000

• Plains ISD Superintendent Stephanie Howard: $130,000
• Note: Less than 500 students.

• Plainview ISD Superintendent Rockwell Kirk: $141,352

• Ropes ISD Superintendent Joel Willmon: $80,000

• Silverton ISD Superintendent Michelle Francis: $74,000

• Smyer ISD Superintendent Dane Kerns: $100,000

• Spearman ISD Superintendent Bill Montgomery: $120,000

• Springlake-Earth ISD Superintendent Denver Crum: $95,000

• Sudan ISD Superintendent Scott Harrell: $105,789

• Sundown ISD Superintendent Scott Marshall: $157,968

• Tulia ISD Superintendent Steve Post: $146,453

• Turkey-Quitaque ISD Superintendent Jon Davidson: $73,130

• Whitharral ISD Superintendent Hiram Sharp:  $87,261

• King's district includes slivers of approximately 12 more ISD's that aren't large enough to include in the district total.

Linda Koop: $301,392 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $31,669)

• Dallas ISD Superintendent Michael Hinojosa: $335,000
• Note: Learn more about Dallas ISD here.

• Garland ISD Previous Superintendent: $282,733
• Note: Apparently, Garland ISD's superintendent quit out of the blue 6 weeks ago and...DADGUM.

• Richardson ISD Previous Superintendent: $286,443
• Note: Richardson ISD's last superintendent retired at the end of the 2016 school year.

Morgan Meyer: $337,334 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $64,132)

• Dallas ISD: See Koop above.

• Highland Park ISD Superintendent Tom Trigg: $339,668
• Note: Oh fun, learn everything you need to know about Highland Park ISD here.

Gary VanDeaver: $112,997 avg. supt. salary (district income per capita: $22,573)

• Avery ISD Superintendent Kelly Burns: $84,200

• Chisum ISD Superintendent Tommy Chalaire: $104,000

• Clarksville ISD Superintendent Pam Bryant: $114,752

• DeKalb ISD Superintendent John Booth: $93,360

• Detroit ISD Superintendent Brian Howie: $97,400

• Hooks ISD Previous Superintendent: $113,516
• Note: Hooks ISD hired a new supt. this past summer.

• Hubbard ISD Previous Superintendent: $78,049
• Note: Hubbard ISD only has 83 students.

• Leary ISD Superintendent Jim Tankersley: $91,798
• Note: Leary ISD only has 122 students.

• Liberty-Eylau ISD Previous Superintendent: $120,515

• Malta ISD Superintendent Brian Bobbitt: $77,850
• Note: Malta ISD only has 119 students.

• Maud ISD Superintendent Charlie Martin: $90,713

• Mount Vernon ISD Superintendent Mark Jackson: $100,107

• New Boston ISD Superintendent Rose Mary Neshyba: $120,000

• North Lamar ISD Superintendent John McCullough: $130,000

• Paris ISD Superintendent Paul Jones: $126,721

• Pleasant Grove ISD Previous Superintendent: $159,000

• Prariland ISD Superintendent Jeff Ballard: $100,132

• Red Lick ISD Superintendent Nicholas Blain:  $94,250

• Redwater ISD Superintendent Kathy Allen: $122,400

• Rivercrest ISD Superintendent Jesse Stanley: $90,000

• Roxton ISD Superintendent Kelly Pickle: $80,487

• Simms ISD Superintendent Rex Burks: $110,207

• Texarkana ISD Superintendent Paul Norton:  $186,467

• VanDeaver has slivers of three additional ISD's in his district that are too small to be worth including in the final calculation.

"About Rinaldi's Amendment": An Open Letter to Craig Estes

"and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book."
Revelation 22:19

The Honorable Craig Estes
Texas Senate
1100 Congress Ave
Austin, TX 78701

Dear Senator Estes,

During third reading for HB 910, Representatives Harold Dutton and Matt Rinaldi added an amendment that would protect the fourth amendment rights of citizens lawfully open carrying a handgun that passed the Texas House with over 130 votes.

I am writing you today to ask you to ensure this amendment makes it through the conference process.

Absent the Rinaldi/Dutton amendment, police would have the authority to harass citizens lawfully carrying openly.  The Rinaldi/Dutton amendment requires police to use the same "reasonable suspicion" standard they use when they suspect other criminal behavior.  It's not difficult to see how, with the wrong cop having a bad day, the possibility for abuse exists.

Contrary to hysterical media reports, the Rinaldi/Dutton amendment is not a backdoor attempt to pass Constitutional Carry (we wish that it were).

Thank you for your consideration.

Adam Cahn
Austin, TX

Senate Passes Tax Relief; House Wastes Day (hears shady stuff late)....

“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
Luke 16:13

(Author's Note: The belated hearing of the Texas House State Affairs Committee can be viewed here.)

Texas State Capitol -- When the Texas House released it's schedule for today, it said the Committee on State Affairs would convene at 10:30 A.M.  The committee was scheduled to hear testimony on four AWFUL bills and one good bill.  We found it strange when we saw the Texas Tribune report that the full house would convene at noon.

As we approached the hearing room, an ideologically sympathetic friend informed this author that state affairs had been delayed until after the full House adjourned from the floor AND that they were going to consider the texting while driving ban.  In other words, the committee hearing was postponed until the end of the floor debate on a controversial topic.  Gotcha.

The state affairs committee was scheduled to hear several bills related to campaign finance and donor privacy.  By scheduling the hearing to commence at 10:30 then scheduling the House to convene at noon to take up a controversial topic, Chairman Byron Cook knew he'd be able to postpone the hearing on the shady legislation until evening.  Byron Cook was making a delay play.

(Sidenote: As we type this sentence, at 8:23 P.M., none of the important bills have even started.)

After a long lunch, we stopped into the House gallery around 12:45pm, where they were passing multiple resolutions honoring firefighters.

Then we decided to check out the Senate!!!

They were talking TAX RELIEF!!!

The Texas Senate was in the process of passing the largest tax cut in Texas' history out of the full chamber.  As part of the process, they were 'hazing' Sen. Paul Bettancourt as he passed his first bill.  Apparently, when a new Texas Senator passes their first bill out of the body, the other Senators ask obnoxious nit-picky questions as a rite of passage.

As we said in a text message:

Everything you need to know about the two houses: Senate debating tax relief; House passing "we love firefighters" resolution.... (12:56 PM)

At 1:22 PM, we returned to the house gallery.  They were beginning to debate the texting ban.  Then we had the amendments.

The House debated over a dozen amendments.  Nothing wrong with that.  It was a lousy bill to begin with, so why not attempt to improve it?!?

But the full House slow walked the amendment process; the only interesting part of this debate was that the Black Democrats and the Tea Party, led by Harold Dutton and Jonathan Stickland, worked together to defeat the bill.

As we said in text messages:

• It would not surprise me if they keep taking amendments on this texting bill for a couple hours.  (3:20 PM) 

• They're going slooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooow.  (3:23 PM)

At 4:14 PM, we received an e-mail from the Lt. Governor's Office:

PR 03 25 2015 Lt. Gov. Patrick on Passage of Tax Relief Package

At 5:07 PM, we received another e-mail from the Texas Public Policy Foundation:

TPPF Statement on Passage of Senate Tax-Cut Package

AUSTIN – Today, the Texas Senate passed a tax-cut package, which includes Senate Joint Resolution 1 and its enabling legislation Senate Bill 1, an amended version of Senate Bill 7, and Senate Bill 8.

SJR 1 and SB 1 provide property tax relief by raising the homestead exemption for school districts from $15,000 to 25 percent of the statewide median home value. SB 7 cuts the business margin tax rates by 15 percent and the amendment calls for a study on full repeal of the margin tax with a report due to the Legislature next September. SB 8 raises the revenue exemption level for the margin tax from $1 million to $4 million.

Texas Public Policy Foundation Vice President of Research and Director of the Center for Economic Freedom Bill Peacock issued the following statement:

“Today was a first step in the process of giving Texans badly needed tax cuts,” said Peacock. “The $4.6 billion in property and business tax cuts adopted by the Senate moves us in the right direction. However, we continue to support the complete elimination of the state’s onerous margin tax.”

Around the time we received the e-mail from TPPF, the house voted to pass the texting ban.

That's when this author left the Capitol.

Just before 6PM, Byron Cook called the state affairs hearing (originally scheduled for 10:30 AM) to order.

Then they went through fluff bills for three hours while we wrote this blog entry.

Just fifteen minutes ago, we received a text message:

Marriage up first (8:55 PM)

That's the good bill, which deals with marriage; that means, as we write this sentence at 9:12 PM, the Texas House's State Affairs committee has yet to hear the five AWFUL bills that restrict your first amendment, campaign finance, and donor privacy rights.

To summarize today in the Texas Legislature: Dan Patrick's Senate passed record tax relief.  Joe Straus' House passed frivious nanny state regulations.  As you read this (Straus lieutenant) Byron's Cook is attempting to curtail your first amendment and donor privacy rights under the cover of night.

Chairman Byron Cook: (512) 463-0370

Watch the hearing livestream here.

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Update (3/26/2015, 9:16 AM): The hearing was still going on when this author fell asleep around 1;30 AM last night.