Senate concurs on SB 2; vouchers headed to Governor's desk

The Texas Senate concurred with House amendments to their signature school voucher bill, SB 2, on April 24th. While there was some speculation that the bill might end up in a conference committee between the two chambers to reconcile any differing opinions about its provisions, after some debate on the Senate floor, the senators voted along party lines to send SB 2 directly to the Governor's desk for his signature.

While the floor debate was almost certainly a foregone conclusion, senators from both parties gave impassioned speeches about school vouchers.

Sen. Roland Gutierrez (D-San Antonio) spoke about a House amendment that removed a prohibition on members of the Legislature applying for school vouchers. He reminded his colleagues that last session, the provision was included without issue, but in the interest of pushing vouchers ahead as soon as possible, they declined to include it this time.

Sen. Kelly Hancock (R-North Richland Hills), a senator known for his reserved nature on the Senate floor, rose to speak about his thirteen years as a school board member in Birdville ISD. He told his colleagues about how the economy was not in good shape then and school districts had to work with even less support from the state. Hancock said that the rhetoric from both pro- and anti-voucher senators had worn on him, citing that supporting public schools is critical, even while school vouchers take shape. He stressed that in his time as a school board member, with what little they had, they prioritized taking care of the teachers and it paid dividends, advice he said his colleagues would be wise to consider as the challenges facing public schools grow.

After all the senators who wished had their chance to speak, the bill's author, Sen. Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe) closed on his bill, taking the opportunity to criticize his school voucher opponents, describing "the divisiveness of fake narratives" that he alleged exist only to prevent school vouchers from passing. He touted SB 2 as "a promise more than three decades in the making," and called his colleagues to concur with the House's changes and send the bill to the Governor.

The Senate concurred, 19-12, and the bill will be signed by the Governor soon. These vouchers will be available for parents beginning next school year.

Updates from the Capitol

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