AUSTIN (Nexstar) — State Representative Brad Buckley, R-Salado, filed his version of the education savings account (ESA) program along with a finance bill that would add billions of new dollars into public schools, but opponents to the bill package said it does not do enough to help public education.
Buckley’s version of the ESA would provide each eligible student with “85% of the estimated statewide average amount of state and local funding per student in average daily attendance for the applicable school year,” according to HB 3, the ESA bill. His office estimated that would be a little over $10,000 a year per student.
Students with a disability would receive more money. The amount of money would depend on how much money the student’s public school district would have been entitled to if they enrolled in public school. The amount cannot exceed $30,000 a year.
Home school students can also benefit from the program but can not receive more than $2,000 per year.
The bill also prioritizes which students will receive the program funding if there are too many applicants in one year. The prioritization looks like this:
| Priority Ranking | Requirements |
| 1 | Students with disabilities whose family income is at or below 500% of the Federal Poverty Line (FPL) |
| 2 | Students whose family income is at or below 200% of the FPL. |
| 3 | Students whose family income is above 200% and below 500% of the FPL. |
| 4 | Every other student whose family income is above 500% of the FPL |
“Educating our children today is complicated and sometimes a public school environment just doesn’t meet the needs of children and parents deserve the right to send their kids to the environment that they feel best suits their needs,” Buckley explained why he filed an ESA bill.
School choice is a top priority for Gov. Greg Abbott. He has traveled around the state to advocate for education savings accounts this session. At the Texas Policy Summit in Austin on Wednesday, the governor said House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R – Lubbock, is on his side and supports school choice.
Past attempts to pass school choice legislation have failed in the House of Representatives. After the filing on Thursday, a group of House Democrats spoke against the legislation to a group of reporters in the Capitol.
“I’m all for even more options,” State Rep. James Talarico, D – Austin, a former school teacher, said. “But what I’m not for is giving away our precious taxpayer dollars to unaccountable private schools that can discriminate against our students.”
Rep. Buckley said the bill would be debated by his colleagues in the House Committee on Public Education, of which he is the chair, and he said he is confident it will pass the House.
“I’ve been hearing that since 2023. Voucher proponents have a habit of declaring victory prematurely,” Talarico said.
Speaker Burrows applauded the bill package filed by his Republican colleague.
“I believe the Texas House is fully prepared to fund public education while acknowledging one size does not fit all—one without the other would leave Texas short. This session, the House will lead from the front by passing a series of sweeping reforms to improve our education system for Texas students, teachers, and parents,” Burrows said in a statement.
How does it compare to SB 2?
Senate Bill 2, the Senate’s version of the ESA program filed by Sen. Brandon Creighton, R – Conroe, would give $10,000 a year to every eligible student in the program attending an accredited private school in Texas, $11,500 for students with disabilities, and $2,000 for home school children.
Eighty percent of SB 2 also prioritizes low-income families and students with disabilities. In that version of the bill, low income is considered at 500% of the FPL. In that version of the program, all students in that range of income would have the same chance to be a part of the program.
School finance bill
The other bill that has people talking at the Capitol on Thursday is HB 2, Buckley’s school finance bill. His office said it will provide close to $8 billion in new funding for public schools. Here’s how that breaks down, according to his office:
- $3.2 billion to increase the basic allotment by $220 per student
- $1.1 billion to boost small/midsize-district adjustment
- $1.8 billion increase in special education funding
- $1.5 billion to expand Pre-K, Fine Arts, HS Career Advising
- $750 million to increase Teacher Incentive Allotment (program to help pay teachers six-figure salaries)
- $450 million investment in teacher training and preparation
The biggest item to look at on that list is the increase in the basic allotment. The basic allotment is the minimum funding schools receive every year per student. The last time it increased was in 2019, but it has remained at $6,160 since then. Rep. Buckley’s bill would increase that to $6,280.
The allotment can be used by schools to pay for operational costs or teacher pay raises, Buckley explained. “It provides more flexibility so local school districts can respond to the needs in the areas and the markets that they’re in,” Buckley said.
Talarico and other Democrats argue the increase is not enough when accounting for inflation. His office estimates the allotment would need to rise by $1,400 to have the same buying power it did in 2019, the last time it was raised.
“This bill is inadequate, it’s insufficient, and when you pair it with the voucher bill, it’s going to take far more money out of our schools than could ever be put in this session,” Talarico said.
In response to that argument, Buckley said his bill was designed to make investments that “not only just approve funding for schools but also improve the outcomes for our kids.”
Repealing STAAR Test
Buckley also filed HB 4, which would repeal the STAAR Test and replace it with a new state assessment that would be administered in portions throughout the school year, according to a news release from the Speaker’s office. The reason for the spaced-out testing is to decrease testing anxiety for students and to allow teachers to get a snapshot of student progress.
Burrows’ release also said HB 4 will restore the state’s A-F accountability system, which gives schools a rating on performance.
What’s next?
The bills will be heard in the House Committee on Public Education. If it passes out of committee, it will then be debated by the entire House.
