AUSTIN — After four hours of debate, the Texas House voted 144-4 Wednesday to pass an $8 billion spending bill that will increase the state’s per-pupil public school funding for the first time since 2019.
“What we have tried to do through this process is to demonstrate the type of leadership and collaboration that our Texas public schools deserve, regardless of party, regardless of opinion on other issues,” House Public Education Chairman Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Salado, told reporters during a morning press conference on the legislation.
“Texas students deserve our best, and this bill delivers,” Buckley added. “Today’s vote marks an important step for the future of Texas.”
House Bill 2, which picked up bipartisan support, including from Rep. Diego Bernal, D-San Antonio, aims to counter the potentially destructive effects on public school funding unleashed by Senate Bill 2, the controversial school voucher legislation backed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.
Voucher critics have long warned that SB2 — which will allocate $10,000 in taxpayer money to families who put their kids in private campuses – will defund public education because Texas schools are funded based on enrollment. If kids head off to private schools, that funding follows — or so the theory goes.
Although HB 2 represents the biggest boost in public education in five years, some lawmakers, including voucher skeptic Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, scolded Buckley during the debate for not being able to answer whether the bill would return public school funding to 2019 levels.
The package approved during the 2019 session offered $6.5 billion in new funding for public schools and another $5.1 billion to lower property taxes. However, rising inflation and subsequent adjustments mean Texas public schools now operate with $1,300 less per student than they did five years ago, according to data from advocacy group Raise Your Hand Texas.
“Is it true that this bill doesn’t catch our schools up to 2019 funding?” Talarico quizzed Buckley about HB 2.
Buckley replied that every superintendent in the state would appreciate the extra funding. However, he stopped short of answering Talarico’s direct inquiry.
“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,” Buckley said. “But House Bill 2 is a significant investment.”
HB 2 will now go to the Senate for further consideration.
The House next will debate the voucher bill, SB 2. The measure has already passed the Senate but is expected to face vigorous House debate, where it’s likely to face serious opposition from Democrats and some rural Republicans.
House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, joked this afternoon that debate on the legislation could last until early Thursday morning, according to Texas Tribune reporter Renzo Downey.
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This article appears in Apr 2-15, 2025.
