Texas blocks school choice as other Republican-led states go all-in

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School choice has enjoyed massive success in the past few years, with nine states passing universal programs for their students. Stubbornly, Texas remains on a short list of Republican-controlled states that refuse to empower parents as the decision-makers in their children’s education.

The Texas House of Representatives recently voted to kill school choice, but not indefinitely. Twenty-one Republicans joined all Democrats in an 84-63 vote to strip education savings accounts (ESA) from HB1, a massive public school funding bill that would earmark $7 billion in additional funding for public schools and provide $4,000 raises to Texas teachers. The House failed to pass those measures as well, sending the bill back to committee after eliminating the school choice program.

A minority of Republican legislators refuse to listen to their constituents and support school choice. Eighty-eight percent of Texas Republican primary voters supported a nonbinding school choice ballot proposition last year. Numerous polls show widespread support from Texans of nearly all demographics.

Despite this, a group of twenty-one Republicans rebuked their party platform and their constituents. Eighteen of the twenty-one Republicans were endorsed by the Texas affiliate of the nation’s largest teacher’s union.

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