If Texas lawmakers want to use taxpayer money to fund private education, they’re going to hear from a lot of concerned citizens. A contentious public hearing on the issue lasted almost 23 hours this week, as hundreds of people spoke to lawmakers.
About 330 people registered for public testimony at the House Education Committee hearing on House Bill 3, from 8 a.m. on Tuesday until around 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday, according to WOAI.
The bill would allocate $1 billion toward education savings accounts, which families could use for private school tuition, according to the Texas Tribune. Most participating students would receive approximately $10,893 every year, according to the Tribune. And it will cost taxpayers a lot of money. A state Legislative Budget Board analysis expects the program would cost $10 billion by 2030, WOAI reported.
Needless to say, some people are not happy about this. One public school educator in Corpus Christi testified that the program would effectively be “stealing public funds” from communities that need them, the Tribune reported.
Students, parents, and teachers gave much of the public testimony. And we know that statewide, a voucher program is unpopular. Around two-thirds of likely midterm voters in Texas oppose similar school voucher programs, according to a Z to A Research survey in March.
But vouchers are the top priority of Gov. Greg Abbott this session, and there is national pressure on Texas lawmakers to get them passed, so here we are.
Proponents say vouchers give parents greater flexibility in choosing what they believe is the best education for their children. But research in other states shows that vouchers result in taxpayer dollars funneled toward families who are already paying for private school. Critics argued that giving taxpayer dollars to private schools will lead to more public schools struggling. Currently, about 73% of Texas public school districts are underfunded, according to the Kinder Institute at Rice University.
“A vote for HB 3 is a vote for layoffs and economic decline in your own communities… you’re not just defunding schools, you’re dismantling community traditions for a failed plan and we’ll remember,” public school teacher Danielle Bryant said at the hearing.
The committee did not vote on the bill at the end of the meeting, and the next one is yet to be scheduled.
Read more at Texas Tribune and WOAI.
