This blog is part of our 89th Legislative Session Recap series. Click here to learn more about how the bills passed this session will affect you & your community.
Official Bill Caption
Relating to the establishment of an education savings account program.
What it Does
Senate Bill 2 creates a taxpayer-funded private and religious school voucher program. Funds can be used by parents of any income level to pay for tuition, fees, uniforms, transportation, tutoring, and other educational costs related to attendance at accredited private schools or home schooling beginning in the 2026-2027 school year. SB 2 will cost taxpayers one billion dollars for the first biennium; up to $30 million of that may be used by the comptroller to oversee the program. The comptroller will certify and contract up to 5 “educational assistance organizations” to administer the program. Together, these organizations can be paid up to $50 million over the first biennium.
Why it Matters
Texans believe public education has the ability to ensure any child, no matter their race, family income, or zip code, can lay the foundation for a bright future. Governor Abbott, whose campaign coffers are filled with money from voucher-supporting billionaires, traded those futures for power and profit by signing SB 2. He ignored the overwhelming and bipartisan opposition from community members, students, parents, and teachers who instead pleaded for full funding of our public schools.
Legislators, too, betrayed Texans. There was bipartisan support for an amendment to give Texans the power to vote on vouchers, but after pressure from Abbott and Donald Trump, the cowardly majority caved.
This voucher scam is a boon to those who will profit from its multimillion-dollar bureaucracy, but a betrayal of Texas taxpayers, and most importantly, of our public school students. Based on experiences in other states, SB 2 will benefit wealthy families who can already afford private schools, explode the state budget as the program grows, and increase tuition at private schools–all without improving outcomes. While leaving school districts grappling with budget deficits from chronic underfunding and buckling under the weight of government mandates, SB 2 showers money upon private and religious institutions that can legally discriminate and evade the accountability, testing, and other requirements of public schools.
What’s Next
TFN and our allies will not back down. Every child — no matter their race, zip code, income, faith, or LGBTQIA+ identity — is worth fighting for. Our work to ensure access to high-quality public education for all will continue, and we will organize to hold those responsible for this betrayal accountable at the ballot box.
