The Senate’s Republican bill would let state leaders grow the program by taking money from other agencies without the Legislature’s approval. The House bill would bar the practice.
The Texas House and Senate are at odds over how much discretion to give state leaders in funding a private-school voucher program — the latest flashpoint in the ongoing battle between the two chambers over whether the state should help schoolchildren pay for a private education.
As a result, the eventual size and cost of a voucher program — if approved by Republican lawmakers who are locked in a rancorous intra-party fight over the issue — is, at least for now, unknown. In the case of his bill, he said, adjustments may need to be made simply because it’s unclear how many students would participate, which would affect how much money is needed for the program.
If the program is wildly popular and fills up, the Senate proposal triggers a system that prioritizes public school kids with educational disadvantages, economic hardships and disabilities. First, though, the state needs to find out how successful the savings accounts will be, he said. After that, he told fellow senators during floor debate, it’s not the intention to cut lawmakers out of the decision making process over the program’s life.
“It’s lipstick on a pig,” he said in a statement. “This pig needs this lipstick, but it’s still lipstick on a pig.” Abbott has made no secret about his wish for a program that eventually allows every Texas family that wants to avoid public education to access tax dollars to help them do that.
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