A Texas Senate committee has advanced a school voucher-style bill that would allow families to use public funds for private education, despite concerns over its long-term costs.
The Senate Education K-16 Committee approved Senate Bill 2 (SB 2) late Tuesday in a 9-2 vote, with Democratic Sens. Royce West of Dallas and José Menéndez of San Antonio opposing the measure.
SB 2 would create $10,000 education savings accounts (ESAs) for up to 100,000 public school children that could be spent on tuition for private schools and school supplies, while homeschool families would receive at least $2,000 per child. It’s another incarnation of a policy that Gov. Greg Abbott unsuccessfully attempted to pass in the last session.
However, fiscal projections from the Legislative Budget Board (LBB) indicate the cost could climb significantly. While Republican lawmakers have earmarked $1 billion for the program’s first year, estimates show expenses could reach $3.75 billion annually by 2030, totaling $11 billion over four years.
SB 2 author Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, dismissed these figures as “fairy tale projections” and insisted lawmakers would control the program’s growth.
The proposal would prioritize $800 million of the initial $1 billion budget for low-income students and children with disabilities, leaving $200 million for general applicants.
During the hearing, Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio, raised concerns about the bill’s definition of a “low-income household,” noting that it includes families earning up to 500% of the federal poverty level.
Under this definition, a single parent with one child earning up to $105,750 annually would still qualify as a low-income household based on the 2025 federal poverty guidelines. For a family of four, the threshold would be even higher at $160,750 per year. In comparison, Texas’ median household income stands at approximately $76,292, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Sen. Menéndez questioned Sen. Creighton, the bill’s co-author along with the committee’s eight other Republican members, about why the income limit was set so high.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has signaled strong Senate support, but the bill still faces hurdles in the Texas House, where rural Republicans and Democrats have historically blocked similar efforts. Abbott, however, has vowed that school vouchers will pass, citing his success in replacing House Republicans who opposed them in the last legislative session.
SB 2 is expected to pass in the Senate, but its fate in the House remains uncertain.
The Senate Education Committee met for nearly eight hours on Tuesday. The archived livestream can be viewed on the Senate website at senate.texas.gov/av-archive.php.