Earlier this week, the House Public Education Committee postponed a formal meeting for Tuesday, April 1, scheduled for the committee to vote out the House school finance plan (HB 2) and the Senate ESA bill (SB 2). Both bills had previously been heard in committee and were left pending.
In a tweet late Monday, Chairman Brad Buckley noted that he planned to take the bills up on Thursday upon adjournment to give lawmakers more time to review internal district runs, which were not available to lawmakers until late Monday evening. That formal meeting has now been officially rescheduled for Thursday, April 3, upon adjournment of the full House. Formal meetings are not available to watch online.
Both bills have committee substitutes.
Highlights of the HB 2 Committee Substitute
- Increases the Basic Allotment (BA) to $6,500 with a guaranteed yield increment factor (GYIA) of $55 for the 2026-27 biennium. Increases the percentage school districts must spend on salary increases from 30 to 40 percent, prioritizing teachers with more experience.
- Increases the small district weight from .0004 to .00057.
- Increases the midsize district weight from .000025 to .00003.
- For districts with fewer than 300 students in a county with no other school districts, the weight increases from .00047 to .0006.
- Increases the comp ed allotment weights from .275 to .28 and the bilingual education weights by .02.
- Creates a fine arts allotment weight in grades 6-12 of .008 per ADA. Limits the total state expenditure for the program to $15 million per year.
- Caps Tier 2 golden penny yield at $129.52. Links the copper penny yield to the BA ($6,500) x .008.
- Moves funding for special education to intensity of services-based funding.
- Provides an allotment of $1,000 for special education evaluations.
- Requires the commissioner to adjust school districts’ enrollment and ADA for each six-week interval instead of waiting until settle-up.
- Provides relief for school districts that fail the property value study. School districts would be held harmless at different percentages over several years.
- Prohibits school districts from employing uncertified teachers in foundation courses. Exemptions are allowed for courses other than reading and math as follows:
- For the 2026-27 school year, no more than 20 percent
- For the 2027-28 school year, no more than 15 percent
- For the 2027-28 school year, no more than 10 percent
- For the 2028-29 school year, no more than 5 percent
- Creates the Retiree Educator Reimbursement Grant, which would reimburse school districts for TRS costs associated with hiring retirees (surcharge).
- Creates a Grow Your Own Partnership Program, which allows school districts, educator prep programs, and higher education institutions to partner together find solutions to the low availability of qualified classroom teachers.
- Creates various grants for services for students with autism, staff training for dyslexia, and for staff recruiting for special education.
- Increases the CCMR outcomes-based bonus from $2,000 to $4,000.
School district runs from the committee substitute have not been made available to the public at this time.
Read the text of the committee substitute for HB 2.
Highlights of SB 2 as Filed (Committee Substitute Not Yet Adopted)
The following are highlights of the bill as filed. It was amended on the Senate floor before it passed the Senate, and a committee substitute that could have additional changes is expected to be adopted by the House Public Education Committee prior to the bill being voted out of committee tomorrow. That substitute is not publicly available yet.
- Creates a universal ESA program within the comptroller’s office to pay for education-related expenses of approved families
- Allows approved parents to submit a request for payment to an educational service provider through comptroller-contracted “educational assistance organizations”
- Permits the comptroller to contract with up to five educational assistance organizations
- Defines eligibility as children eligible to attend a Texas public school or enroll in a public school’s prekindergarten program
- Funds equal to:
- $2,000 for students not enrolled in a private school (homeschooled)
- $10,000 for those enrolled in a private school
- $11,500 for those enrolled in a private school and who have a disability
- Establishes a lottery system if there are more applicants than there are spots
- Prioritizes up to 80% of ESAs for students who were previously in public school and are members of a low-income households (500% of the poverty threshold) or children with a disability
- Allows any remaining ESAs to be provided to any eligible applicant
TASA will provide highlights of the version of the bill that passes out of the House Public Education Committee and goes to the full House when that information is available.
