On Wednesday, the Republican-controlled Texas Senate approved school choice, one of Governor Greg Abbott’s top legislative priorities.
The vote, 19–12, was roughly party-line. It followed hours of discussion that started on Wednesday after 12:30 p.m. Senate Bill 2 underwent several amendments that were adopted by lawmakers.
“The Texas Senate’s passage of SB 2 is the biggest launch of any universal school choice program in American history, with $1 billion in funding for 100,000 students,” Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick stated on Wednesday night.
Students would get $2,000 year under this plan. They will receive $10,000 annually if they enroll in a private school that has earned accreditation.
The annual award for students with impairments will be $11,500. Republicans claim that while all pupils would be eligible, preference will be given to those from low-income households and those with impairments.
Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, voiced concerns during the measure’s discussion that pupils in public schools with poor performance would not receive preference.
“I’ve consistently heard you say in the past that we want to make certain to take care of the kids in disadvantaged schools first,” West stated. “This doesn’t do that. This puts them into a group with everybody else and if it’s your luck of the draw, you may be able to get a scholarship, but if it’s not, you don’t get a scholarship.”
“Will cover all walks of life, all income-vulnerable students, and students with disabilities in many different categories,” Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, responded. However, they might not attend a “D” ranked school.
They could not be succeeding at that school for personal reasons, or there might be issues with bullying, fentanyl, or safety.”
The bill was opposed by Senator Roland Gutierrez, a Democrat from District 19.
“We know that school shootings happen in private schools as well, we’ve seen it in Tennessee twice. These private schools do not have to comply with anything that is a prerequisite of the School Safety Commission that we dropped over $100 million to, to make sure that our children are safe,” Gutierrez stated.
The bill will move from the Senate to the House.
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“This is the sixth time the Texas Senate has passed school choice, with every previous bill dying in the Texas House. The Senate will pass school choice over and over again until the House passes this bill,” Patrick stated. “The days of limiting millions of Texas students to a one-size-fits-all approach are over.”
Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Salado, who is the leading Republican in the House on education concerns, informed that a separate bill will be submitted in the House for members to review.
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Abbott stated on Monday that he is still hopeful that the plan would be approved by the House this year, in contrast to two years ago when it was turned down.
“I feel very confident it’s going to pass in the House. Speaker Burrows, every time I’ve talked to him, he says school choice is going to pass. I feel good about the Speaker’s perspective. I worked closely with Representative Brad Buckley who will lead the charge in the Texas House. He feels very confident about it.”
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