The Texas House begins debating school choice vouchers. Gov. Abbott is ramping up pressure after the Senate passed the plan, aiming to expand private school funding. NBC 5’s Phil Prazan has the story.
A proposal allowing families to use public school dollars on private and home schools is halfway through the state legislative process in Austin. However, the easy part was passing "school choice" by supporters in the Texas Senate helmed by Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe.
Once again, the idea heads over to the Texas House, where a coalition of rural Republicans and Democrats have, up until now, killed the idea. Last year, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott ousted nearly a dozen GOPers who opposed him on the issue. He said he now has the votes in the lower chamber, but it's not reality until the votes are taken.
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WATCH HEREThe proposal is a $1 billion package in the state budget, allowing 100,000 families to enter a lottery to get roughly $10,000 to go to private schools. Middle-class and lower-class families will be prioritized for 80% of the program, and the remaining 20% will be open to everyone.
Only one rural Republican state senator joined the Democrats in opposing the measure on Wednesday. The vote was 19 to 12.
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SIGN UP “School districts are already taking extreme measures to raise revenue," said Sen. Sarah Eckhardt on the floor, fearing the program will divert money away from public schools in the years to come.
Others had problems with allowing wealthy families to get the opportunity to get included in the program.
“If everyone’s a priority, then no one’s a priority, and that’s my concern," said Sen. Jose Menendez.
Creighton sponsored SB2 and told NBC 5 the extra push from Abbott this year is putting them in a better situation than the failed attempt last year.
“I want to thank Gov. Abbott for naming this an emergency item," said Creighton on the Senate floor.
The big change this year has been Abbott's consistent push. He's planning campaign-style events and rallies around the state to pressure House members.
“What we need is the voice of every parent in this state to contact representatives and senators in Austin, Texas," the governor said at a rally earlier this week in Athens.
The proposal again faces a slower and rougher road in the Texas House. Creighton told NBC 5 that getting it out of the Senate faster will put more pressure on members in the lower chamber to take it up and move on the proposal.
“We got started as fast as we could, as we’re working on the base budget. SB 2 got to the floor as fast as we can find in modern history," said Creighton.
The House has not officially appointed their point-person for education, but it will likely be Rep. Brad Buckley, R - Salado. Creighton believes they'll be able to work out the differences.
"I wouldn’t exactly say there are any particular deal breakers. I think the House and the Senate will be surprisingly aligned in our efforts," he said.
