by Al Greenwood
Senior Staff Writer
Austin - University of Houston faculty, alumni and students were in Austin Thursday to promote the campus and "Back to Basics," a cooperative proposal by Texas system universities to improve graduation rates.
Back to Basics was a cooperative effort of The University of Texas, Texas Tech, Texas A&M and UH systems.
However, Gov. George W. Bush's tax reform bill, which could cut school property tax rates by half, could sabotage Back to Basics. Both programs ask for about $1 billion in state surplus funds.
The tax bill, if passed, will usestate funds, rather than property-tax revenue, to fund public education.
The state will fund the tax reform by expanding the sales tax, said State Rep. Bob Rabuck, R-Conroe. Since the bill is a constitutional amendment, Rabuck explained that Texas voters must approve it.
Several other programs will compete for piece of available funding, including the Back to Basics proposal, which asks for about $1 billion to bring the graduation rates in Texas colleges and universities up to national standards.
However, if the tax relief program passes, "it saddles up most of that money," said Richard Murray, a UH political science professor.
The state will use its $1 billion surplus to help fund the tax cut, Murray said, leaving less money in state coffers for higher education. "Now, we may get $200 million for all the higher institutions in the state," Murray estimated.
Thirty-one visitors from UH traveled to Austin to promote Back to Basics and try to secure funding. They broke into groups of three to five and visited many senators' and representatives' offices.
"The visits last about five minutes," said Michael Gorman, a physics professor who made "courtesy calls" to several offices.
Gorman said he basically "showed the flag" and didn't discuss many bills, "especially since the legislators are on the floor."
The UH group was one of hundreds the legislative staff has seen since the Legislature convened.
"It's typically a constant flow of constituents and other interests," said Christina Maldonado, an administrative assistant for State Rep. Vilma Luna, D-Corpus Christi. The traffic starts at about 6 a.m. and can continue until about 10 p.m., she said. "The more debate that's out there, that's when the traffic comes in."
Maldonado said she could get up to 100 calls about the same subject.
The most influential and successful groups are well-organized and articulate, she said. One of the most successful groups were some bikers who successfully lobbied against the bike helmet law.
Although they wore chains and leather, Yvette Lozano, a legislative assistant for Luna, said, "They would be well-prepared, not only in their presentation, but in answering any questions."
David Williams, a legislative aide to State Rep. Gary Elkins, R-Houston, even recommended biker Sputnik Strain to the UH groups. "Everybody knows him," he said.
When he visited legislators' offices, mathematics Professor William Fitzgibbon said the staff was polite and was willing to listen, but added, "You can't tell what people are thinking."
UHS Vice Chancellor for Governmental Relations Grover Campbell would not comment on the UHS performance in Austin, maintaining, "It's always a work in progress."
However, he said the System avoided a $1.6 million reduction. He added they may also gain several million from the College of Optometry formula-funding proposals.