AUSTIN – Three weeks after calling on Fort Worth Independent School District Superintendent Kent Scribner to resign, for adopting a transgender bathroom policy without a school board vote or allowing public comment from parents and the public, today Lt. Governor Dan Patrick requested an opinion from the Attorney General (AG) on the legality of Scribner’s action:
“No policy as significant as this should ever be created and put into action unilaterally without consultation with parents and a superintendent’s elected bosses,” said Patrick. “A school district is not a monarchy and Scribner is not a king.
“Once again I call on this superintendent to resign or be fired if he does not immediately pull-down his policy.
“I have asked our AG to determine if either of the following is in violation of state law:
- Does Superintendent Scribner’s policy violate Chapter 26 of the Texas Education Code, or any other law, in its effort to keep student information from parents, and;
- Did Superintendent Scribner have the authority to unilaterally adopt this policy without adoption by school board vote and without public comment?”
The Lt. Governor also questioned the purpose of six public hearings in Fort Worth which begin tonight on the adoption of the superintendent’s policy, calling them a series of ‘after the fact sham hearings.’
Patrick concluded, “I am also sending a letter to all Texas school districts this week urging them not to adopt President Obama’s transgender guidelines which do not have the force of law.
“The President’s threat of withholding federal funds is just a threat. By standing together we will demonstrate Texas will not be threatened or blackmailed by a policy that doesn’t make sense and puts our girls and women at risk.”
ATTACHMENT:
AG Opinion Request Letter (3.49 MB, PDF)