Greetings PTA leader,

Last week, members of the Texas House filed HB1 and HB177 in response to Governor Abbot’s call to provide education savings accounts for all Texas schoolchildren. We’ve provided a snapshot comparison of the House and Senate bills below. 

House Bill 1 (HB1): priority bill for increased funding that includes one-time bonuses for school staff and offering education savings accounts on a limited basis starting next school year.

HB 1 would give parents 75% of the average amount that each school receives in per-student state and local funding, allowing them to use public dollars for private school tuition or some other approved expenses. HB 1 would also make a minor increase to the state’s basic allotment, currently $6,160, to $6,190. In the second year, the allotment would increase by another $310 to $6,500. The state provides other funding beyond the basic allotment, so the amount used to determine how much education savings account money parents are eligible for would be higher than the basic allotment. The state would be required to determine that number by January 15th of each year.

Regarding teacher compensation, educators would receive a one-time $4,000 bonus. School districts would be required to spend 50% of the additional state funding from the basic allotment increase on salaries for full-time employees, excluding administrators. For the first year of the educational savings account program, 25,000 Texas students would be eligible in the 2024-25 school year. That number would increase by 25,000 students each successive year until 2027, when the cap would be removed. Students with disabilities from low-income families would be prioritized in HB 1. However, unlike the Senate’s version, no specific limits were imposed on how many students from each income bracket could participate in the program.

HB 1 includes funding for home-schoolers, though it is limited to $1,000. HB 1 also includes several provisions related to teacher preparation, teacher raises, and shortages and changes to special education funding. The bill would allocate funds to help school districts pay for more teacher residencies by expanding the Teacher Incentive Allotment.

House Bill 177 (HB 177): The House Democrats’ $40 billion proposal includes:

HB 177 would provide more money for special education, school safety, and mental health needs. Support staff in schools would also get a small bonus. The bill would increase the current per-student allotment – $6,160, as set in 2019 –  by more than $2,700. In future years, under the proposal, that basic allotment would be adjusted for inflation.   The goal is to bring Texas in line with the average amount of dollars spent per student on education nationally.

Senate Bill 1 (SB 1): SB 1 would create education savings accounts that would give students $8,000 of public funds to use on private school tuition and $1,000 to homeschooling students. Students would qualify for these funds via a lottery system.

Senate Bill 2 (SB 2): SB 2 would provide public school teachers a smaller bonus than proposed by the House Democrats, along with giving a $75 boost to the basic allotment. Under the Senate’s bill, teachers in large districts would get a $3,000 bonus. Those in small districts — with fewer than 5,000 students — would get a $10,000 bonus. SB 2 also doubles security spending from $10 per student to $20 and from $15,000 per campus to $30,000.

Unfortunately, we are at a standstill as Governor Abbott refuses to address the teacher crisis or fully fund the constitutionally required education of 5.4 million Texas children served by public schools until vouchers are addressed, and public school proponents refuse to budge on vouchers until funding creates a level playing field. 

While we appreciate both the House and Senate attempting to address the two most critical issues impacting K-12 education, holding those solutions hostage to controversial legislation that prioritizes a select few only hurts children.

The Texas PTA Call to Action is still open to contact your legislators. Let your representatives and senators know that Vouchers Hurt Children.  Education Savings Account + Inadequate Public School Funding = Bad Math and Bad Policy 

Texas PTA believes nothing is more fundamental to making every child’s potential a reality than strong public schools. We will continue to monitor bills related to our legislative priorities, including the lead priorities, as they were not satisfactorily addressed in the regular session.

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We have an important general election going on with 14 constitutional amendments on the ballot that are worth researching. Visit vote411.org for voting locations and ballotpedia.org for your sample ballot.

Early Voting: Oct. 23-Nov. 3
Election Day: Nov. 7