AUSTIN, Texas - The Texas House passed an amendment that strips school vouchers from a major education bill.
The vote on the amendment, authored by retiring state Rep. John Raney, R-College Station, was 84-63. Twenty other Republicans joined Raney in voting for the amendment. None of the Democrats voted against it.
The vote is being seen as a major blow for Gov. Greg Abbott, who made “school choice” a top legislative priority. After the vote, Abbott said he would fight on.
The Rio Grande Valley delegation was split on the amendment. Five of the six Democrats - Reps. Armando Martinez of Weslaco, Oscar Longoria of La Joya, Terry Canales of Edinburg, Bobby Guerra of McAllen, and Erin Elizabeth Gámez of Brownsville - voted for the amendment. State Rep. Sergio Muñoz, D-Mission, was absent. The two Republicans in the Valley delegation - Rep. Ryan Guillen of Rio Grande City and Janie Lopez of San Benito voted against the amendment.
The Rio Grande Guardian will bring commentary from the Valley representatives as soon as it arrives.
One of the most vocal critics of school vouchers in the Texas House has been Rep. James Talarico of Austin. Click here to watch his commentary in committee.
The Coastal Bend region was also split on Raney’s amendment. Reps. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi, and J.M. Lozano, R-Kingsville, voted against the amendment. Retiring Rep. Abel Herrero, D-Robstown, voted for it.
Across the rest of the border region there was strong opposition to school vouchers. Voting for the Raney amendment were Reps. Richard Peña Raymond, D-Laredo, Tracy King, D-Uvalde, Eddie Morales, Jr., D-Eagle Pass, Mary E. González, D-Clint, Lina Ortega, D-El Paso, Joe Moody, D-El Paso, and Claudia Ordaz Perez, D-El Paso.
The Texas Senate had already passed an education bill that included school vouchers. Sens. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, Juan Hinojosa, D-McAllen, and Morgan LaMantia, D-South Padre Island voted against vouchers. Hinojosa recently penned a guest column on the issue. Click here to read it.
LaMantia’s predecessor in the Senate, Eddie Lucio, is for vouchers. He penned a guest column on the issue for the Guardian recently. Click here to read it.
The Guardian also ran a guest column for schools vouchers by Valeria Gurr, founder of la Federación Americana Para los Niños. And it ran guest columns against school vouchers by Eric Holguin of UnidosUS and Robert Velez, a Rio Grande Valley educator. Click here to read Holguin's analysis. Click here to read Velez's analysis.
Gov. Abbott said:
"Today's vote is just another step on the path to provide school choice for parents and students across Texas. I will continue advancing school choice in the Texas Legislature and at the ballot box, and will maintain the fight for parent empowerment until all parents can choose the best education path for their child. I am in it to win it. The vast majority of Texans - and Republicans in the Texas House - support school choice. The small minority of pro-union Republicans in the Texas House who voted with Democrats will not derail the outcome that their voters demand."
Texas AFT President Zeph Capo said:
“The only good voucher bill is a dead one. I’m glad to see the Texas Legislature has finally delivered. I’m heartened that the House stripped the voucher from HB 1, and I am grateful to Rep. John Raney for authoring the amendment to do so. A majority of Texans continue to believe vouchers that take away from our public schools is bad policy, and we agree with them. If the governor would like to truly empower parents, I hope he turns his persistence and attention to supporting and funding the public schools that educate their children every day.”
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said:
“The Texas Senate has led on school choice since I became Lt. Governor. The Senate has passed school choice in 2015, 2017, and 4 times this year. I'm stunned that 21 House Republicans would continue to fight against parents and deny them the right to choose a school they think is best for their child. These members apparently think their own view is more important than the views of their voters, of which over 80 percent of Republicans support school choice, along with the majority of Independents, and many Democrats.”
Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said:
“Today, our Texas House Democrats voted to defeat House Bill 1 – a bill designed as a bribe to pass Greg Abbott’s voucher scam by diverting public dollars from public schools and giving handouts to wealthy families so their kids can continue attending private and religious schools – while working Texas families foot the bill and our public schools are left to crumble. Greg Abbott and his cronies in the Pink Dome have mastered the art of the snake oil salesman, and we’re proud of our Texas Democrats who fought against their plot to defund our public education system at every step. This is a major victory for our kids, our teachers, and the majority of Texans across the state who oppose defunding our neighborhood schools to subsidize private education for the wealthy.
“We say to Greg Abbott: Nice try. But Abbott’s authoritarian approach to passing his agenda has not – and will not – deter Texas Democrats’ commitment to ensuring a better future for the millions of children that attend public schools. We will continue to fight for public education no matter what. Period. Now, we call on the Governor to support a clean school finance bill — one that fully funds our schools, gives our teachers the pay raise they deserve, and actually helps our kids. No more bribes — let’s come together to help our children achieve dreams as big as Texas.”
