(Texas Scorecard) – In a sign that the legislative session is now in full swing, the Texas House Public Education Committee held a hearing on its school choice proposal, House Bill 3, drawing significant testimony and debate.
Filed by State Rep. Brad Buckley (R–Salado), HB 3 would create an education savings account program, giving parents access to around $10,000 per child for private school tuition, homeschooling expenses, or other educational costs. The program would be funded with $1 billion in the current budget proposal, allowing an estimated 100,000 students to participate in its first year.
The proposal is a key priority for Gov. Greg Abbott, who made school choice a central issue in last year’s Republican primaries, where he backed challengers against incumbent lawmakers who opposed similar efforts.
The Texas Senate has already passed its version of a school choice bill, increasing pressure on the House to act. However, the issue has long faced resistance in the lower chamber, particularly from Democrats and a minority of Republicans.
Notably, however, this session a majority of members have signed on as coauthors to the bill, a first for school choice.
Democrats on the committee, including State Reps. Gina Hinojosa, James Talarico, and John Bryant spent hours attempting to poke holes in the bill, questioning its impact on public schools and the potential for fraud.
Buckley defended the proposal, arguing that school choice does not come at the expense of public education and that parents should have more control over their children’s educational future.
“If the standard is ‘let’s get public schools perfect before we do anything else,’ we’ll never do it,” Buckley said.
He added, “The argument that we have to keep things as they are and fix them over time leaves out one important factor—what about the kids in the system right now? Parents shouldn’t have to wait and hope that schools improve in five years when their children will already be gone.”
Meanwhile, Gov. Abbott reinforced his push for school choice at a Parent Empowerment event hosted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation just down the road.
“Our goal is to put Texas on a pathway to ranking number one in educating our kids,” Abbott said. “We rank number one in so many different areas. It’s time Texas ranks number one in educating the children of the great state of Texas. Three things are required to do that: academic excellence, exemplary teachers, and empowering parents to choose the school that’s best for their child.”
The hearing comes just a week after the same committee considered House Bill 2, a major school finance proposal that would increase public education funding by $8 billion.
While Buckley has indicated that the committee will not immediately vote on HB 3, he suggested that lawmakers will take action on the bill in the coming weeks as negotiations continue behind closed doors.