AUSTIN, Texas — Texans are getting their first look at a bill lawmakers hope to pass this legislative session to create a school voucher program.
School vouchers are a high priority issue for Texas Republican leaders, and lawmakers filed their formal proposal in the Senate Friday morning.
The upper chamber’s proposal, Senate Bill 2, has a few key points. It would provide families with $10,000 per year in taxpayer dollars to help them pay for tuition at an accredited private school. That amount would jump to $11,500 for families of children with disabilities. The bill would also provide at least $2,000 a year per student for home-schooling families who participate in the program.
One of the bill’s authors, State Sen. Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe), released a statement Friday, saying the bill “places parents sat the center of their child’s education, empowering them with the freedom to choose the educational path that works best for their families.”
Any child attending a public school or enrolled in a public school’s pre-K program could apply to the program, but the bill would prioritize students in low-income households and children with disabilities if demand for the education savings accounts exceeds available funding.
Organizers who help administer the program would also have to notify parents that private schools don’t have to follow federal and state laws regarding special education that public schools are required to abide by.
SB 2 also has a provision to address potential misuse of funds, directing the state to refer to local authorities any organizations or people helping administer the program or participating in it who use the funds in improper ways. Approved expenses, according to the bill, include private school tuition, instructional materials, tutoring and training for an education-based certification.
In budget proposals released this week, both the Senate and the House earmarked $1 billion for a voucher program – double what was proposed in 2023. But the proposal faced opposition from Democrats and some rural Republican lawmakers, many of whom say a voucher program will take more resources away from an already struggling public education system.
According to the website Private School Review, the average cost of tuition at a private school in Texas is just over $11,000. The figure jumps to over $20,000 for special education private schools.
Under SB 2, the proposed $1 billion in the budget would mean roughly up to 100,000 Texas students who want to enroll in an accredited private school could participate in the voucher program. Public schools in Texas currently enroll about 5.5 million students.
SB 2 has been referred to the Senate Committee on Education K-16. Lawmakers will host a public hearing about it on Tuesday.
The Texas Tribune contributed to this report.