Sen. Ted Cruz backing education bill in response to pandemic impact

SAN ANTONIO (KTSA News) — Texas U.S. Senator Ted Cruz is backing legislation he hopes will help K-12 school children catch up after time lost during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Catch Up Our Kids Act of 2022 will include a mix of tax incentives and a re-allocation of some of the money in the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER).

“At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, schools across the country began to close and ‘go virtual’ in order to protect the health and well-being of our kids. But while the science quickly showed that COVID-19’s impact on schoolchildren was minimal, teachers unions, and liberal bureaucrats across the country were slow to return to normal. Because of this, millions of children across the country fell behind educationally – an outcome far more harmful than the pandemic. This is unacceptable, but the Biden administration has done little if anything to help these kids catch up. As a father, I am personally concerned about educating the next generation. This issue is foundationally important, and the Catch Up Our Kids Act will begin to address the learning loss we’ve seen because of the pandemic, and get our kids back on track.” – Senator Ted Cruz

The new proposal would offer parents a temporary 3-year Learning Loss Tax Credit of $1,200 per-child to allow the parent or legal guardian of a K-12 student to recoup actual expenses incurred for education-related activities, among other allowances. It has the backing of the American Federation of Children, Texas Public Policy Foundation, American Principles Project, and other organizations.

In a release, Senator Cruz says low-income students were among the hardest hit when most schools in the U.S. went to remote learning in Spring 2020 and did not return to in-person learning until Fall 2020, although many school districts waited longer.