Around 2am on April 17, after more than 10 hours of discussion, Texas House lawmakers first passed a law that would grant public money to families to pay for private education. Discussions regarding the bill began on April 16th at about 3:30pm.
overview
The House of Representatives voted 85-63 to create a $1 billion education savings account program. Two House Republicans voted against the proposal. Rep. Dade Phelan (R-Beaumont) and R-New Boston Rep. Gary Vandeaver.
Under Senate Bill 2, amended by the House of Representatives, participating families can use state funds to pay private school tuition fees, such as textbooks and transportation, and other education fees.
Under the proposed ESA program, most participating students will receive approximately $10,000 a year, or 85% of public school public schools receive from state and local sources. Data from Texas Educational Institutions shows that between 2022 and 23, the average Texas public schools received $12,815 per person in state and local funding.
Disabled students receive up to $30,000 a year on SB 2, while families homeschooling their children receive up to $2,000 a year.
The House must vote for SB 2 again before the bill can return to the Senate. If the state senator does not agree to changes by the House, the two rooms create a small “meeting committee” to hash the differences.
During the approximately 17-hour session, the House of Representatives initially passed House Building 2. This is a measure to send $7.7 billion in new dollars to public schools.
context
On the house floor, SB 2 supporters said the bill would expand educational options for families who don’t want their children to go to public schools.
“Public education is at the heart of so many Texas communities. (But) despite our best efforts and investment, not all students serve the best in our local public schools,” said Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Salado, who sponsored SB 2 in the House.
Some Democrats said on April 16 that they believe the ESA program will divert funds from public school districts facing economic challenges and unfairly benefit wealthy families.
“I’m standing with my colleagues, my teachers and parents, ready to throw it away in public schools,” D-Austin Rep. James Talarico said at a rally on April 16 before the House vote. “Governor Greg Abbott is trying to thrust private school voucher scams into his home, a scam that gives dollars to wealthy parents who have charged our taxes and already sent their children to private schools.
Creating an Educational Savings Account Program is a top priority for Abbott and other Texas Republican leaders. The state Senate passed similar laws multiple times during the 2023 legislative session, but the proposal died in the House of Representatives due to opposition from rural Democrats and Republicans.
“According to the Bible, he was off on the seventh day. We passed six school choices in the Senate. Now we’ve taken a break,” Lt. Col. Dan Patrick said at a March 25 press conference on his education savings account.
Discussion
The 43 amendments proposed by Democrats to the Education Savings Account Bill were shot down during discussions on April 16-17. One of the first proposed amendments aimed to give Texas voters the final say in the ESA program by holding a statewide referendum on the ballot in November.
“The governor says that private school vouchers are very popular, so if he’s telling the truth, I think there’s no problem with this referendum,” said Taralico, who raised the amendment.
Taralico’s amendment was voted 86-62 mainly on the party line.
Ana-MarÃa RodrÃguez Ramos, D-Richardson Rep. Ana-MarÃa RodrÃguez Ramos, said she was concerned that Texas families would be “deceived” and apply for programs that may not benefit from it.
“I have a message to the working family community in Texas. The voucher is a scam aimed at benefiting the rich,” Rodriguez Ramos said on April 16th.
According to the Texas Private Schools Association, between 2023 and 24, the average cost of tuition for Texas private schools was $10,965 for eighth grade kindergarten students and $14,986 for high school students.
SB 2 has prioritized applications from students with disabilities and low-income families throughout the 2026-27 academic year, saying 20% ​​of the program funding is available to Texas K-12 students regardless of their income.
Some House Democrats urged colleagues to limit eligibility for the proposed ESA program to low-income Texans, but those revisions also failed.
Addressing concerns that SB 2 would be sucking away from public schools and sucking away money, Buckley said he doesn’t think public schools in other states were harmed by ESA or related programs.
“When you’re serving and meeting the needs of your children, we know that (many) parents stay in their public schools,” Buckley said. “We know that this opportunity we offer won’t hurt public schools. It’s just creating a different lane or another option for our parents.”
According to Education Week, a news and research institution, 29 states and the District of Columbia have programs that use public funds for private education, including 16 states with educational savings account programs. When SB 2 becomes law, the first such program will be created in Texas.
“Everyone in this room will do anything to give your child an educational opportunity,” said Rep. James Frank of R-Wichita Falls, just before the House voted for SB 2. today. ”
