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Texas House created a $1 billion private school voucher program on Thursday, giving final approval to the bill that would cross historic milestones and bring Governor Greg Abbott’s top priorities to the desk more than ever before.
The lower room signed Senate Bill 2, a voucher proposal, with 86-61 votes. All current Democrats voted against the bill. They were joined by two Republicans. In previous legislative sessions, there is none in the bipartisan coalition that consistently blocked proposals that Texans would use taxpayer money to allow their children to pay private schools.
“This is an extraordinary victory for the thousands of parents who have advocated more options when it comes to education,” Abbott said in a statement, vowing to “speechly sign the bill to this bill” as he reaches the desk.
The first vote came more than 10 hours after the Chamber of Commerce preliminary approval of the $7.7 billion school funding package. House Bill 2, which was finalised on Thursday with a 142-5 vote, also aims to improve the quality of special education services by allocating funds based on the individual needs of children with disabilities.
Democrats argued that increased funding would barely damage the district’s surface needed to return from the budget deficit or to cover growing costs after years of inflation, but they ultimately supported the bill after hours of debate.
A more dramatic showdown is surrounding the voucher bill, with Democrats trying to block it in November with an amendment that closes off school vouchers for statewide votes. But the last gutter manipulation garnered support from one Republican Republican (former House Speaker Dade Phelan of Beaumont).
The groundbreaking voucher vote shows that since 1957 it has approved a law that would allow Texas homes to use state money for children’s private schools. The results examined Abbott’s crusades to build a majority of the Provoucher’s home in last year’s primary election by targeting Republicans who tanked their previous proposals in 2023.
The House plan will put in $1 billion to create an education savings account. This is a form of voucher that families can use to pay for private school tuition and other school-related expenses, such as textbooks, transportation, and treatment. The bill will link dollars per student in the voucher program to public education funds, so as public schools receive more money and decrease public education funds, the amount available to each participating student will increase.
If public demand exceeds the program’s capabilities, students with disabilities and families defined by lawmakers as low-income can prioritize, but admission to private schools is not guaranteed.
Democrats expressed disappointment at the approval of the home voucher, saying the outcome represents a greater benefit outweighing the everyday Texans.
“This bill is everything politics is wrong,” said Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D. Austin.
Vouchers and school funding measures are now heading to the Senate. Members of both rooms are expected to adjust for differences in voucher proposals at the Closed Conference Committee. The biggest difference centers around how much money the participating students should receive, which applicants should be prioritized, and how the programme should deal with students with disabilities.
House debates over the voucher began Wednesday afternoon and ended early Thursday. Lawmakers made the bill’s provisions that would limit funding from people without disabilities and wealthy households defined as families worth around $156,000 or more, from 2026 to 2027 onwards, accounting for only 20% of the program’s total budget. A 20% cap applies each year of the potential voucher program.
The bill now requires private schools to exist for at least two years before they can participate in the program. Give state auditors more empowerment to review the activities of organizations contracted to manage the program. The state’s annual report on the program also requires the inclusion of dropouts, expulsions and graduation data for participating students with disabilities.
Wednesday’s discussion on SB 2 covered many of the vouchers’ pros and cons that were repeated throughout the legislative meeting.
Republicans tried to assure their colleagues that the bill prioritizes low-income children and students with disabilities. Democrats pointed out that the law does not impose admission requirements for private schools. This means that even the students whose states line up first in the program can deny them.
High-income families whose children already attend private schools benefit from the large voucher programs that are primarily established in other states.
Democrats submitted dozens of amendments they believed would make Texas laws more equitable to adequately service, but they were all rejected. One of the rejected proposals came from Rep. Harold V. Dutton Jr. of D-Houston. He tried to provide more voucher amounts to lower-ranked Lang students. He argued that some families could not afford to send their children to private schools, even with $10,000 in state support.
Private school reviews show that the average cost of a Texas private school is over $11,000.
“If you’re in a 12-foot hole and someone sends you a 10-foot rope,” Dutton said, “That’s not a big option.”
Rep. Brad Buckley, Republican chairman of the House Public Education Committee, was also questioned on Wednesday about a recently added provision in SB 2 banning Texans who are not documented to participate in the proposed voucher program.
Speaker Dustin Burrows is the final vote on Senate Bill 2 at Texas House on Thursday. credit: Bob Demrich from Texas Tribune
SB 2 prevents students who cannot prove that their child is a US citizen, or prevents children from legally participating in the program within the country. Several lawmakers questioned the state entities responsible for checking children’s citizenship, how legislation protects applicant privacy, and whether it would address students who find certain documents difficult to access.
Buckley revealed that organizations that help manage the state’s voucher program will oversee the application, and that the process includes protection “for all personal information.” If applicants are unable to provide appropriate documentation, they will not be involved in the program, Buckley said. The law does not specify exactly what documents the family needs to provide.
The Texas Senate had considered banning previously undocumented Texans from participating in the voucher program if the U.S. Supreme Court overturned its constitutional right to public education, but the change did not fall into the laws of its Chamber of Commerce.
Legal issues regarding citizenship restrictions for SB 2 remain. All US students are entitled to public education regardless of their immigration situation, and potential voucher programs rely on public dollars.
The House also ultimately approved the Priority School Funding Act. Two years ago, public schools missed nearly $8 billion, but Abbott was conditional on approval of the voucher.
This year’s Public Education Expense Bill will increase school basic funding by $395, up from $6,160 to $6,555. That amount, known as a basic allocation, automatically rises every two years by linking it to growth in asset value. 40% of the allocation is booked for teachers with more than 10 years of classroom experience, with higher wage increases, resulting in higher pay increases.
Additionally, the bill limits the use of schools for educators who lack formal classroom training, excluding unclear teachers teaching core classes. Modify the current setting-based model of special education funding by providing money to schools based on the individual needs of students with disabilities. Students who are placed in the same classroom and require different levels of support will receive the same dollars in the current setting-based model.
Republicans celebrated the bill as a valuable investment in public education during debate time. Democrats also expressed support for legislation, claiming it would barely damage the surface of what the district needs. Many school districts are currently tackling challenges ranging from budget deficits and teacher shortages to campus closures.
Rep. James Talarico of D-Austin pushed Buckley, author of the bill, to see if the $8 billion in the measure would be enough to resolve the struggles of Texas schools.
Buckley did not directly acknowledge that his bill is not about dealing with all the financial pressures facing the district. Instead, he will focus on raising billions of dollars in funding, and Congress hopes to provide this session.
“I just want to emphasize our members, as you have the opportunity to vote today for the biggest investment in public education in our state’s history, so we will continue this process and return sessions after the session to make sure we have the resources of the school,” Buckley said.
Members of the masses watching the debate from the House Gallery exploded with laughter and applause in support of Tararico’s question. Talarico and the people in the gallery were not happy with Buckley’s answer.
“I’m going to consider it no until I get yes,” Tarico said.
The House has eliminated previous provisions in the bill that removes the “harmless” provisions of 2023 that provide financial relief to school districts that lose funds due to state property tax cuts, a major source of income for public schools.
Lawmakers have kept other aspects of Congress down, from whether Congress should continue to invest heavily in compensated education, to whether they will provide support to students who are not receiving services at risk of dropping out of school, to how the state will hold charter schools accountable for mismanagement.
HB 2 will go to the Senate for further consideration. The chamber has already passed funding proposals for many similar schools, but has expressed its opposition to increasing the basic funding for the session.
Basic assignments provide districts with flexibility to meet unique campus needs, including staff pay, utilities, and maintenance. Instead, the Senate advocates for more targeted funding in areas such as teacher pay, school security and special education.
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