Texas House Passes School Choice Bill After Marathon Partisan Battle
Democrats Apoplectic; Conservatives Cautiously Optimistic
Last week, in an almost 11-hour marathon debate, the Texas House of Representatives passed legislation that will create Texas’ first private school choice program.
Senate Bill 2 would provide up to $1 billion in 2027 for students to receive $10,000 for private school tuition or a $2,000 homeschooling supplement. Texas’ Legislative Budget Board estimates that 35,000 students will use the Education Savings Accounts created by the legislation to attend private schools. As many as 269,500 homeschool students might participate. About 5.5 million students are currently enrolled in Texas government schools.
School choice supporters celebrated the result of the House debate. Matthew Ladner, who has worked to pass school choice in Arizona, Texas, and other states, posted on X, “The Texas House passage of ESA legislation was a monumental achievement, and should be a pivot point for the choice movement overall.”
The Heritage Foundation’s Jason Bedrick wrote, “In a historic victory for educational freedom, the Texas House of Representatives finally passed a universal school choice bill—marking not just a win for families in the Lone Star State, but a watershed moment for the entire school choice movement.”
Democrats in the Texas House were not happy, however. They tried to stop the bill through amendments, offering more than 40, over 10 plus hours in an attempt to forestall the inevitable 86-61 vote, largely along party lines. Two Republicans joined the Democrats in opposing the bill.
Rep. Gene Wu, who leads the House Democrat Caucus, expressed his anger about school choice during the debate.
“While it purports to be a benefit for the poor, it does nothing but take from the poor and give to the rich,” Wu said.
No, Mr. Wu. It takes from the unions and gives to people who actually perform at teaching.