The bill, which has been the source of great friction among members of both chambers, sets aside $1 billion in taxpayer dollars to allow parents to cover private school tuition costs. Critics say the voucher plan, at $10,000 per year per student, merely serves as a coupon rather than offering greater accessibility to families from all financial backgrounds and allows private schools to circumvent the required state curriculum on taxpayers’ dimes.
The bill was a top initiative for Gov. Greg Abbott, who heavily pushed it leading up to the session and promised to sign it into law if it reached his desk.
“For the first time in Texas history, our state has passed a universal school choice bill out of both chambers in the Texas Legislature,” said Abbott in an early morning press release announcing the passage. “This is an extraordinary victory for the thousands of parents who have advocated for more choices when it comes to the education of their children…. When it reaches my desk, I will swiftly sign this bill into law, creating the largest day-one school choice program in the nation and putting Texas on a pathway to becoming the best state in America for educating our kids.”
The legislature's kingpins—Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, and Speaker of the House Dustin Burrows—made a massive effort to garner support for the bill. All three named SB 2 as one of their top priorities heading into the session, making passage almost inevitable after the November elections increased the number of voucher-friendly representatives. According to the Houston Chronicle, President Donald Trump phoned in, encouraging House members to vote in support of the bill.
“This is a big vote today,” Trump said over a phone held by the governor. “I hope you are able to vote in a positive manner.”
The president, a strong political ally of Abbott's, even offered to appear in the House to try to pass the bill. Trump has expressed strong support for school vouchers and extended support to the roughly two-thirds of states that already have similar programs.
Senate Bill 2 ran in tandem with House Bill 2, which was monikered the punchy “Texas Two Step.” HB 2 successfully passed on Wednesday afternoon before the reading of SB 2. The bill increases the state’s basic allotment per student by $395. It’s the first increase in the amount school districts receive per student since 2019, though Rep. James Talarico, a former teacher from Austin, says it still falls short.
The $8 billion legislation is still one of the largest education funding bills to pass the House in the last few years. It will directly contribute to teacher pay and special education.
“Today marks a historic chapter for education in our state, with the Texas House passing its landmark ‘Texas Two Step’ proposals to deliver more education opportunities for students alongside the largest-ever increase in public school funding,” Patrick said in a press release following the passage of both bills. “House Bill 2 and Senate Bill 2 work together to meaningfully improve the overall education ecosystem in Texas, with the latter empowering parents of students with unique learning needs to access educational resources that might otherwise be unaffordable or inaccessible.”
A few of the proposed amendments from Democratic representatives would take the issue of vouchers to voter ballots or place earning caps on the beneficiaries of vouchers. Neither amendment was successfully adopted. Families earning billions of dollars per year have an equal opportunity to vouchers as a low-income family, though the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Brad Buckley, assured his colleagues that priority placement would be offered to special needs and low-income students. Still, private schools receiving vouchers have the final say on who attends their schools, and eligibility for a voucher does not promise admittance to a prestigious or outright affordable private school.
A nearly identical bill, House Bill 3, pointed out that among students who are deemed unqualified at typically religiously affiliated private schools and those who still can’t afford the cost of private school even with a voucher, are students who, for a myriad of reasons, lack the paperwork to qualify for the program.A group of billionaires is trying to dismantle our public schools with a private school voucher scam.
— Rafael Anchía (@RafaelAnchia) April 16, 2025
Today, I’m prepared for a long debate to defend our public schools. #TxLege #TxEd pic.twitter.com/DrrXodvEnw
“Let's set the record straight, vouchers discriminate. Period,” wrote Rep. Ralph Anchia on X.
The representative pointed out that children legally present in the country, such as asylees and those with temporary protective status, would not qualify for the program because they do not have the proper documentation as United States citizens, though they cannot be deported.
“I just want to point out that there are people who are lawfully present in the United States, but may not, under your definition of lawfully admitted, be covered by the voucher program,” Anchia wrote.
