Despite governor’s promises, Texas Senate’s education bill will defund public schools, critics charge

Despite Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s assurances that his prized school voucher legislation wouldn’t rip funding from the state’s already cash-strapped public schools, critics say the Texas Senate’s version of this session’s school-funding package does just that.

During a Thursday hearing, the Senate’s education committee unveiled its version of House Bill 2, and the differences between it and the $8 billion funding proposal passed last month by the Texas House are stark.

For one, instead an additional $390 basic allotment per student for each of the state’s school districts, the Senate’s version allocates just $55 per student.

What’s more, the Senate’s version strips away a $25 million annual allotment for grade 6-12 art and music classes along with funding the House set aside for students in bilingual education programs. Further, it hacks out a provision that would extend free pre-K to children with disabilities.

“After getting his way on vouchers, [Abbott] is killing the hostage anyways,” Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, said in a Thursday statement. “The crisis affecting Texas public schools will only accelerate. While schools across the state are closing, teachers are being laid off, and programs are being eliminated, Texas Republicans are openly siding with their billionaire mega-donors over 5.5 million public school students.”

Indeed, San Antonio’s Judson’s ISD held a meeting on Thursday to discuss the possibility of closing two campuses due to funding issues.

Filed by a bipartisan group of lawmakers that includes Rep. Diego Bernal, a San Antonio Democrat, HB 2 aimed to mitigate the effects of Abbott’s school voucher legislation by giving Texas public schools their most significant funding boost since 2019.

Education experts testified that the voucher legislation — which offers state tax dollars to parents who want to send their kids to private school — would cut into both enrollment and funding for public school districts, especially in rural areas.

Despite the cash infusion supplied under the original version of HB 2, public schools still would be forced to operate with $1,300 less per student than they did five years ago, when adjusted for inflation.

“I think the inflationary environment that our districts have had, that our businesses have suffered through, that our families have suffered through, have created tremendous gaps in lots of funding,” State Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Salado, said last month. “But House Bill 2 is a significant investment.”

Despite its dramatic cuts in proposed per-pupil spending, the Senate’s version of the legislation does include substantial teacher pay raises — albeit favoring teachers in smaller, exurban, or rural, school districts.

Under the Senate plan, teachers with three to four years’ experience in school districts with 5,000 or fewer students —Floresville ISD or La Vernia ISD, for example — would receive a $5,000 raise, while those with five or more years’ experience would get a $10,000 pay bump.

Meanwhile, educators working in urban districts such as San Antonio ISD with three to four years’ experience would only receive a $2,500 raise. That would rise to $5,000 if they have five or more years on the job.

“What’s different about this bill is the teacher pay increases for the first time in Texas history live beyond House Bill 2,” said Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, who chairs the Senate’s education committee. “They’re permanent. The cup is filled every two years. Every biennium.”

The committee didn’t set a date to vote on the bill. However, with the session scheduled to end June 2, time is running out.

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This article appears in May 14-27, 2025.