Analysis: No, the Texas Legislature isn’t lowering your property taxes
Texas legislators would love to lower your property taxes, but none of the proposals they're considering in the special session would do that. Full Story
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![Construction in downtown Austin on June 20, 2017.]()
Credit: Austin Price / The Texas Tribune -
House backs bill putting $212 million toward retired teachers' health care program
The Texas House voted Tuesday to use $212 million from the Rainy Day Fund, a savings account largely fed by oil and gas production taxes, to decrease premiums and deductibles for retired teachers in the state-run health insurance program. Full Story
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![Rep. Trent Ashby, R-Lufkin, speaks on House Bill 20 surrounded by colleagues on the House floor August 1, 2017. The bill would put a one-time influx of $212 million into a health plan that serves hundreds of thousands of retired teachers.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate approves teacher bonuses, benefits — but not pay raises
The Texas Senate passed a bill that would provide funding for teacher bonuses and retirement benefits, slashing a controversial provision that would require school districts to increase teacher salaries without additional state money. Full Story
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![State Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, and Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, are shown during a special session debate on July 25, 2017.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune -
Senate approves bills on "private school choice" and school finance study
The Texas Senate backed bills that would subsidize private school tuition and study the state's school finance system. Full Story
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![State Education Chairman Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, is shown on the Senate floor May 24, 2017, after announcing that he would not name conferees to consider House Bill 21, a school finance bill, effectively killing the measure.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate panel approves teacher bonuses, retirement benefits
The Texas Senate Finance Committee approved a bill Saturday that would put one-time influxes of money toward the Teacher Retirement System and teacher bonuses, and require districts to fund $1,000 in teacher pay raises. Full Story
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![State Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, explains the benefits of Senate Bill 19 during a Saturday meeting of the Senate Finance Committee on July 22, 2017.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune -
Senate committee passes bills on private school choice and school finance study
The Texas Senate Education Committee passed a bill that would create a "private school choice" program to subsidize private school tuition for kids with special needs, and a bill to study the school finance system. Full Story
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![State Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, during a July 21, 2017 Senate Public Education Committee hearing. Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr., D-Brownsville, is seated to his left.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Abbott adds school finance, retired teacher benefits to special session
In what seems to be an overture to the House, Gov. Greg Abbott added two new education-related issues to his special session call Thursday: school finance reform and increased benefits for retired teachers. Full Story
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![The three leaders of Texas make nice at a short Cash Management Committee meeting in the Betty King Room of the Texas Capitol on July 18, 2017, the first day of the special session.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune -
Texas teachers voice opposition to education-heavy special session
The day before the start of this summer's special legislative session, educator groups rallied at the Texas Capitol, demanding more state resources and fewer unfunded mandates. Full Story
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![The day before the start of the special session — on July 17, 2017 — several teacher and education groups turned out at the state Capitol to rally against GOP leaders' public education agenda.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
Patrick proposes millions for teacher bonuses, retirement
Days before the special session, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick rolled out a specific plan to give retired and long-term teachers up to $1,000 in additional bonuses, using money from the Texas Lottery over the long-term. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick addresses the media at the Texas Capitol on July 13, 2017, days before the start of a special session.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Analysis: The political play behind Gov. Abbott’s call for teacher pay raises
Gov. Greg Abbott's special session agenda will include a call for a $1,000 pay raise for teachers. But he's not offering state money to pay for it — and he's not necessarily talking about giving every public school teacher a $1,000 check, either. Full Story
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![Wanke Elementary School in north San Antonio, Friday, March 9, 2012]()
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Texas House education leaders won't budge on school finance, private school choice
Rep. Dan Huberty, chair of the House Public Education Committee, said he plans to file a bill during the special session to reform school finance — and to continue to reject "private school choice." Full Story
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![Reps. Dan Huberty, Diego Bernal and Gary VanDeaver discuss the past legislative session and the upcoming special session at a conference of the Texas Association of School Administrators in Austin on June 25, 2017.]()
Credit: Austin Price / The Texas Tribune -
Straus needles Texas Senate on public education funding, "bathroom bill"
Speaking to hundreds of educators ahead of a special session packed with education bills, House Speaker Joe Straus chastised the Senate for underfunding school finance reform. Full Story
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![Texas House Speaker Joe Straus leaves the stage after speaking at the Texas Association of School Boards' annual summer leadership institute in San Antonio on June 14, 2017.]()
Credit: Laura Skelding for The Texas Tribune -
Texas school districts cut costs to avoid closure as state funding cuts loom
Superintendents in hundreds of Texas school districts rely on a pot of state funds that expires in September. Without drastic cost-saving measures, some districts are worried they may have to shut down. Full Story
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School finance legislation is pronounced dead
Senate Education Chairman Larry Taylor on Wednesday afternoon said that he would not appoint conferees to negotiate with the House on a proposed school finance overhaul. “That deal is dead,” he said. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dan Huberty, R-Houston, chairman of the House Public Education Committee, speaks about his school finance bill on May 24, 2017.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate puts voucher-like program in school finance bill
The Texas Senate voted to approve a bill that would simplify funding formulas for public schools and let parents use state money to send their kids with disabilities to private schools or pay for homeschooling. Full Story
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![State Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, discusses a bill amendment in the Senate on March 30, 2017.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate will consider many bills in one for school finance vote
The Texas Senate will consider a version of the school finance bill, as soon as Sunday, that now includes an assortment of other House and Senate education bills — according to a notice Senate staffers received Saturday. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dan Huberty (left), R-Houston, and state Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Property tax relief doesn’t equal extra money in your pocket
There's a simple test to tell you whether the promise of a tax cut is really a tax cut: Is there money in your hand? Full Story
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![At a May 17, 2017, news conference, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick told reporters that the House had to pass two items — property tax reform and the "bathroom bill" — or he'd look to force a special session.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Senate panel tacks "school choice" provision onto education finance bill
A Senate committee passed the House’s major school finance reform bill, after adding a controversial provision subsidizing private school tuition for special needs students — a move unlikely to go over well in the House. Full Story
![State Rep. Dan Huberty (left), R-Houston, and state Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Today’s hated business tax is tomorrow’s property tax relief
Some Texas lawmakers want to kill the franchise tax that so many businesses hate. So far, so good. But it might leave a hole in the state's pocket when it inevitably comes time to rebalance the state's financing for public schools. Full Story
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House gives preliminary approval to bill overhauling school finance system
In a preliminary vote, the House approved Rep. Dan Huberty's bill to inject $1.6 billion into public schools and simplify complicated funding formulas. Legislators must still take a final vote on the bill. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dan Huberty, R-Houston, chairman of the House Public Education Committee, after his bill overhauling Texas' school finance system was approved on second reading on April 19, 2017.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune