It’s a budget night for Texas House, and the school’s choice fund looks safe and healthy.
Lawmakers are expected to continue discussing various amendments to their $337 billion two-year spending plan late Thursday night, but none of the proposed amendments will derail the proposed $1 billion school selection program, CBS Austin reports.
Democrats and some Republicans passed such an amendment in 2023. This effectively blocked alternative school choice measures when the state budget was last decided.
Now, two years from now, Texas appears ready to set up the nation’s largest educational savings account (ESA) program.
The program will be limited to approximately 100,000 students per year based on budgets, but will be built towards universal access, as will Florida, Arizona and 13 other states. Texas has over 5 million public school students.
The Senate approved a version of the School Choice Plan (SB 2) early in the legislative meeting, preparing the final bill pathway that would reach Abbott’s desk as the house acted.
James Henson, director of Political Projects in Texas, told CBS he expects the final version to be “not too far from what we’re circulating.”
If the House approves tonight’s spending bill, the House and Senate will re-meet to resolve differences between their versions before they are approved and sent to the governor.
