Three school finance lawsuits, that is.
Flanked by Edgewood Superintendent Jose Cervantes, parents, students and community leaders from Texas districts, MALDEF attorney David Hinojosa highlighted three key claims in its suit at a press conference Tuesday.
The lawsuit claims the state has shown inequitable treatment against property-poor school districts in violation of the Texas Constitution, with gaps in funding forcing impoverished districts to tax at a higher rate than rich districts.
It says the state inadequately funds low-income and English Language Learner students’ education.
It claims that local school districts have lost all meaningful discretion in setting their tax rates by having to deal with a tax cap putting the biggest burden on poor districts.
The article refers to four such lawsuits, but as far as I can tell only three have been filed so far. The Equity Center lawsuit was first, in October, and the Texas School Coalition suit came last week. The Thompson lawsuit is still out there, but as far as I can tell from searching around, it has not been filed yet, and appears to have been delayed a bit. Originally expected to be filed in mid-November, this story from November 29, which I found on the Thompson & Horton LLP website, said that it was expected the week of December 5. As that has now come and gone, I presume we’re still waiting. And as with the redistricting litigation, these suits may well end up being joined, but it’s too early to say. According to the story, don’t expect any or all to go to trial till next fall.
Pingback: A field guide to the school finance lawsuits – Off the Kuff