Some Texas families could receive public dollars to spend on private education through a limited school choice proposal that was unveiled late Thursday night.
A sweeping school funding bill by the Texas House priority included the fiercely debated voucherlike program that has faced opposition in the state’s lower chamber and is opposed by public school educators.
Rep. Brad Buckley, the Republican chair of the House public education committee, laid out a plan that would limit education savings accounts, or ESAs, to 25,000 students beginning next school year and could potentially double in size the following year.
The ESA would be worth 75% of the state’s average per-student funding that’s typically given to public schools. Currently, the basic allotment is $6,160 per student with districts receiving additional weighted funding to account for other needs, such as special education.
Priority for limited spots would be given to certain students, such as those with a disability or those living in poverty.
Buckley’s bill would boost formula funding for public schools and offers other sweeteners for educators such as by providing more money for salaries, one-time bonuses for staff and incentives to encourage high-quality teacher preparation and certification.
However, Gov. Greg Abbott listed the voucherlike effort as the only school-related item on the Legislature’s third special session of the year. Abbott, who has made school choice a priority over the past year, consistently championed universal ESAs for which all students would be eligible.
Buckley’s proposal still faces uncertainty in the House, where rural Republicans have repeatedly joined with Democrats to knock down any voucherlike proposal.
His bill differs from the Senate’s proposal, which has already passed that chamber. The proposal by Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, would provide a family access to $8,000 to use on a child’s private-school tuition or other related costs, such as uniforms and textbooks. If a child is home-schooled, the family could receive $1,000.
The ESAs would come from $500 million to be drawn from the state’s general revenue. If more families sought the ESA than the state could afford, they would be selected based on a lottery with certain students prioritized, such as those from low- or middle-income families.
Texas has about 5.4 million public school children.
