School choice debate intensifies at Texas House

AUSTIN, Texas - The school choice debate intensified on Tuesday.

Those for and against the idea faced off during a committee hearing in the state house.

During a downtown rally, Gov. Abbott urged supporters to help him push the legislation forward.

School choice debate in the House

The backstory:

HB 3 is the plan being pushed in the state House. A hearing on the legislation got underway. 

An exchange between Rep. James Talarico and committee Chairman Brad Buckley made it clear passage would not come without a fight.

"I just want to make clear that it's $7 billion. Instead of going to public schools, it is going to go to subsidize tuition for parents who are already sending their kids to private school," said Talarico. 

Rep. Brad Buckley, (R) Salado, countered that the money being used is from the budget surplus and not in the calculation for education funding. 

Talarico responded by saying the money could be sent to public education.

"They could go to roads," said Buckley.

The House Public Education Committee debate is an all-too-familiar verbal fist fight under the Capitol dome.

"It hasn't changed. And so, this is about choice: Parental rights. The child belongs to the parent," said Rep. Charles Cunningham (R) Humble.

The plans under consideration by Texas Lawmakers are promoted as "Universal School Choice," but open enrollment is only for making an application. 

State Rep. Alma Allen noted that only a limited number of families would get the money after clearing a selection process.

"If there's a lottery, that does not mean that everybody will be accepted," said the Houston Democrat.

In defending the idea of school choice, Rep. James Frank (R) Wichita Falls admitted the plans are not perfect and will not cover everyone who wants the money.

"I represent 44 school districts in over 14 counties. There are places where they won't be able to be used. More than likely, there may only be one county with 245 people. The only option may be online in that county. But am I going to take options away from somebody who truly needs it because it's not perfect? No," said Frank.

Dig deeper:

Two years ago, this debate killed a funding increase for public education and a teacher pay increase. 

School choice supporters during the hearing claimed the funding will come this session. That promise was also made by Speaker Burrows at the rally.

"We can actually help public education as well. We can fund it. We're fighting for that. And I do believe this, one of the basic principles of this country is competition. And competition does make everything stronger and better. And this will not only help parents. It will make public education stronger because of competition in it," said Speaker Burrows.

School choice rally

What they're saying:

The children Governor Greg Abbott embraced on Tuesday were part of a school choice rally at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. 

The political photo-op came after the governor gave the kids and their parents an assignment, one that involved a trip to the state capitol.

"Are y'all ready to make some history? You're a part of history by going down there and being in favor of school choice. Thank you all for being here," said Gov. Abbott.

House Speaker Dustin Burrows was also at the rally. He noted the House members that were there have said they are solid yes votes for school choice.

"These are your elected representatives who are about to make school choice a reality in Texas," said Speaker Burrows.

What's next:

Passage of school choice will also have to navigate some political in-fighting. The Senate has already passed a plan, and it differs from HB 3 in how the Education Savings Account money will be distributed. 

In a recent interview with FOX 7, Speaker Burrows said he expects a compromise plan will be worked out before the session ends.

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