Texas Senate proposes scaled-down school finance bill

AUSTIN — The Texas Senate on Friday gutted a proposal by the House that would put an additional $1.8 billion towards funding public schools.

Sen. Larry Taylor, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, called the House proposal to begin overhauling the state’s school finance system “unrealistic.”

He unveiled his own version of the bill, which reduced funding to $311 million. 

“It’s unfortunate that it was put out there with the $1.8 billion,” said Taylor, R-Friendswood, during a committee hearing on Friday. “Obviously, a billion dollars is not within the price range that we can do.”

Taylor said the Senate will vote Saturday on its version of the school finance proposal. A conference committee that includes selected lawmakers from both chambers will then discuss the bill and, in theory, find a compromise.

House Speaker Joe Straus has been pushing for reforms to Texas' school finance system, which the state's Supreme Court deemed constitutional but flawed in a decision last year. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said during the regular session that the Senate would only pass a school finance measure if it included vouchers for private schools.

The House passed its version of the school finance bill with overwhelming support earlier this week. 

“This is the most important piece of legislation I believe we’re debating during this legislative session," Rep. Dan Huberty, R-Houston, who authored the measure, said on the House floor last week. "What this bill does, is it takes the first step. It takes the first step that I believe is critical for our schools." 

Huberty carried a similar measure during the regular session, but it was killed when the Senate attempted to add a voucher-like proposal to the legislation.

Patrick indicated he would not support the House's special session proposal as passed. 

"Simply adding more funding without a focus on teachers and educational outcomes, as is being proposed, accomplishes very little," Patrick said in a statement.

The Senate's bill maintains funding for a financial hardship grant that appeared in the original House bill, allocating $150 million to help districts that will lose funding when the Additional State Aid for Tax Reduction, or ASATR, program ends in September.  

It also includes a $120 million allocation for school districts and charter schools to use for construction of new facilities. The House bill included a similar item, but it was removed before the bill went to the floor.

The Senate is proposing a delay in payments to Medicaid managed care organizations from the upcoming budget cycle in order to fund its school finance proposal.

The House bill called for certain payments to school districts to be similarly delayed. 

Republican Senators said they support adopting legislation that would create a commission to study the school finance system and identify improvements during a press conference on Tuesday. Gov. Greg Abbott’s original special session agenda included a call for a commission. He later expanded it to allow lawmakers to make changes to the system. 

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Taylor said Huberty’s proposal was a one-time fix that works as a Band-Aid instead of a long-term solution that could reform the state’s troubled school finance system. 

“The time for tinkering around the edges and making minor changes is over," Taylor said during the press conference. "Adding one-time money for what are obviously continuing expenses to this system is a political fix. It may feel good and be well-intentioned, but it is not a long-term solution."

The Texas Association of School Administrators submitted a letter to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Thursday, urging the Senate to pass the House’s version of the school finance bill. 

“The House version of House Bill 21 is your best chance this year to do something meaningful for all Texas public school students,” the letter reads. “This bill is much more than a Band-Aid. It provides immediate help to schools across Texas that have been coping with the state’s diminishing role in funding education.”

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Madlin Mekelburg may be reached at 512-479-6606; mmekelburg@elpasotimes.com; @madlinmek on Twitter.