Texas House bans school voucher funding

As the Texas House of Representatives continues to debate a two-year $218.2 billion budget, a major move was made on Thursday relating to education vouchers in Texas.

In a 2-to-1 vote, the House approved an amendment to the budget by Rep. Abel Herrero (D-Robstown), banning the Texas Education Agency, comptroller's office and any other agency from using state funds for a school voucher-type program.

This comes on the heels of Senate Bill 3's passage out of the Texas Senate last week. This "school choice bill," authored by Sen. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood), would establish an education savings account program and a tax credit scholarship and educational expense assistance program to be used for educational software, tutoring and tuition at accredited private schools with eligibility limited to residents of the 17 most populous counties in Texas.

Herrero's amendment passed on a 103-44 vote.