Texas leaders followed their playbook in 2019. Will they do so this year?

Texas’ 2019 legislative session was one of the most productive in recent years. That was due in part to lawmakers’ focus on public education: After years of watching our state fall further behind, the Legislature took meaningful action to improve lives by ensuring all students had access to a quality education.

That, and the tone of bipartisanship, offered a sharp contrast to the rancor seen in Washington. To quote the lieutenant governor, it was the “Super Bowl of legislative sessions.” Voters noticed, sending more incumbents back to Austin than many had predicted.

Amidst a pandemic and with traditional Capitol operations upended, there’s plenty of reason to question whether the Legislature has the appetite to do big things. But Texans won’t settle for running out the clock. Texans want wins.

The Texas Voter Poll, conducted by Texas 2036, the non-partisan think tank focused on the state’s long-term future that I founded, clearly shows Texans want their government to act.

Legislators should start by picking up where they left off. With 2019’s House Bill 3, legislators fundamentally overhauled public education — but those reforms largely end when a student finishes high school. The Legislature should certainly stand firm this year and meet the obligations set two years ago, but it also should look to the needs of Texas workers who have graduated from our K-12 system.

The pandemic has disproportionately harmed people who have fewer years of education. In April, at the height of COVID-related unemployment, almost one in five Americans (18%) with a high school diploma or less was unemployed. For those with at least a bachelor’s degree, that figure was only one in 12 (8%).

And even before the pandemic, our postsecondary and workforce systems were not optimized to meet the needs of Texans. Too few Texans earned living-wage jobs, especially Texans of color. Employers struggled to find skilled workers who could grow businesses. Texas landed some big corporate relocations, but many Texans were more focused on landing their next big opportunities.

In 2021, to help the Texas economy — the ninth-largest in the world — rebound to its full potential, the state should focus on economic policies that will extend the “Texas Miracle” for future generations.

As the Legislature returns to Austin, it should focus on helping Texans get back to work — especially through upskilling and reskilling opportunities that can drive economic growth. For current and future students, systems need to be reimagined so that every graduate has marketable skills and a path to a good-paying job.

Even amidst a pandemic, there’s work to be done. The Legislature should take steps to ensure that Texans can recover and thrive in the aftermath of these setbacks.

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Tom Luce, a longtime Texas civic leader, is founder and chairman of Texas 2036. To learn more about The Texas 2036 Voter Poll, visit www.texas2036.org/poll.