The Senate Education Committee heard testimony on four private school voucher proposals late into the night last Wednesday, March 22. The bills range in financial impact. For just the first year of operation (2024), these bills would cost between $1.1 million to over $4.6 million of state education funds, with increasing costs each subsequent year. SB 8 also contains discriminatory language against LGBTQ+ students and topics in schools through grades PreK-12.

Many proponents of the bills expressed interest in public funds for private religious and home school education. Opponents shared concerns about the immense fiscal impact and the lack of regulation on financial or academic accountability to the public from the program. Others shared research on the discriminatory impact of vouchers against Black and Latino students, students with disabilities, emergent bilingual students, and LGBTQ+ identified students. Some opponents additionally relayed frustration about sending public tax money toward religious schools, and about state funding and potential reporting requirements for otherwise private settings and homeschools. The bills were left pending in the committee for further consideration.

See IDRA's infographic – 5 Reasons Private School Vouchers Would Hurt Students

HB 8 Establishes a Pathway to Increase Disadvantaged Students’ Dual Credit Enrolment and Expand their Access to Opportunities in Higher Education – IDRA Testimony for House Bill 8, submitted by Steve Kemgang to the Texas House Higher Education Committee, March 20, 2023 – See video

Disconnection, Punishment, and Isolation Hurt Children and Make Our Communities Less Safe – IDRA Testimony Against House Bill 655, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Texas House Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety, March 20, 2023

HB 459 Restricts the Use of Harmful Restraints by Police in Schools – IDRA Testimony for House Bill 459, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Texas House Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety, March 20, 2023

Incentives for Instructional Materials that Enforce Classroom Censorship Compromise Students’ Education – IDRA Testimony against HB 1605, submitted by Chloe Latham Sikes, Ph.D. to the Texas House Public Education Committee, March 21, 2023

Banning Books Makes Schools Less Welcoming for Students to Learn – IDRA Testimony Against House Bill 900, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D., to the Texas House Public Education Committee, March 21, 2023

Children Need Education and Support, Not Zero Tolerance Discipline – IDRA Testimony against SB 9, submitted by Paige Duggins-Clay, J.D. to the Texas Senate Education Committee, March 22, 2023

SB 2539 Establishes a Pathway to Increase Disadvantaged Students’ Dual Credit Enrolment and Expand their Access to Opportunities in Higher Education – IDRA Testimony for Senate Bill 2539, submitted by Steve Kemgang to the Texas Senate Subcommittee on Higher Education, March 23, 2023