Texas’ public schools received no new funding in the recently concluded legislative sessions. Most blame this on Gov. Greg Abbott‘s insistence that any new funds be tied to the approval of his pet project – “school choice,” or vouchers, a scheme that would allow parents to take money from the public education system to pay for private school expenses. When the scheme was added to a school funding bill in May, House Republicans joined Democrats in voting it down. In the process, they scuttled an agreement that would have provided $5 billion to the state’s public schools.
After the collapse of school funding, House Speaker Dade Phelan appointed a new committee – the House Select Committee on Educational Opportunity and Enrichment – so members of the House, particularly the House Republicans who voted against vouchers, could study the issue anew. And they did, along with other topics, over two days of hearings from July 11 to 12. Those discussions did not make a strong case for vouchers, however. The primary takeaway was that our public schools are critically underfunded.
“It was a good two days for our public schools and our teachers,” said Austin’s state Rep. Gina Hinojosa, one of the 15 members of the committee. “It was made abundantly clear that we need about $1,000 more per student to just maintain spending from 2019 levels. There was no pushback against that, it was a consensus.”
It’s significant that such a consensus exists, because the committee includes several Republicans who are open to vouchers, and Abbott has promised a special session in the fall to resurrect the proposal.
“Abbott and outside national groups have put an enormous amount of pressure on members to pass a voucher bill,” said Laura Yeager, director of the public school advocacy group Just Fund It TX. “It’s been the governor’s No. 1 priority.”
Phelan’s new committee heard testimony from 44 interested parties, many of them school officials. It also heard from the Texas Public Policy Foundation – probably the biggest enemy of public education in the state – and administrators of private Catholic schools, who are strong advocates for vouchers.
“It was made abundantly clear that we need about $1,000 more per student to just maintain spending from 2019 levels. There was no pushback against that, it was a consensus.” – Texas Rep. Gina Hinojosa
Several witnesses spoke about the needs of special education students, a population that voucher proponents claim will benefit from the proposal. Rep. James Frank, R-Wichita Falls, recounted a conversation with a constituent who supports vouchers because he believes it will give him “leverage” to compel his child’s school to deliver services. “I think denying the parent the right to choose is denying the kids opportunities,” he said.
Hinojosa, who had observed earlier in the hearing that the Texas Education Agency will soon assign a monitor to Austin ISD because of its struggles to provide the same services, said she understood parents’ frustration. But she said the biggest problem is money – special ed services are underfunded by $2 billion per year statewide. “I don’t think there’s any program that is more underfunded in the state of Texas,” Hinojosa said. “When I look at my own school district, AISD spends much more on special education [each year] than it gets in formula funding. And that means, I guarantee you, that they have to cut corners.”
Observers said this is what the hearing will be remembered for: the acknowledgment, even by voucher proponents like Frank, that the state does not properly fund public education. Chair Brad Buckley, a Republican, employed classic Texas understatement in summing up the prevailing sentiment. “The basic allotment in our schools needs to be more than it is now,” Buckley said. “That becomes very clear.”
This article appears in July 21 • 2023.
