A step in the right direction.
Rep. Dan Huberty
The top public education policymaker in the Texas House unveiled a $1.6 billion plan on Monday that he described as a first step to overhauling the state’s beleaguered school funding system.
At a Capitol press conference, state Rep. Dan Huberty said House Bill 21 would boost per-student funding for nearly every public and charter school in the state while reducing the amount of money wealthier school districts are required to give up to buoy poorer ones. The state’s so-called Robin Hood plan has become a hot-button political issue as large districts like Houston have recently had to begin making payments.
“House Bill 21 will not only improve our schools but it will also reduce the need for higher property taxes,” said Huberty, a Houston Republican who chairs of the House Public Education Committee.
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He said HB 21 would increase the basic funding for almost all school districts from $5,140 to $5,350 per student per year. That would happen in part through an increase in transportation funding by $125 per student for all school districts, including property-wealthy districts that currently have limited access to that money.
It also would increase the amount of money the state gives to schools for students with dyslexia. And it would include additional funding for high schools and non-professional staff.
Huberty estimated it would lower payments that property-wealthy school districts pay to the state to subsidize property-poor school districts by $163 million in 2018 and $192 million in 2019. As the state’s share of school funding has decreased, more school districts with swelling enrollment are on the hook for such Robin Hood payments.
The bill is similar to an unsuccessful school finance initiative filed in 2015 that would’ve injected twice as much money into the system — $3 billion — and boosted per-student funding across the board. Still, $1.6 billion is a significant sum amid the current budget crunch.
This bill had a hearing yesterday as well, and despite being overshadowed by the sound and fury of the bathroom bill hearing, there was a report about it.
The bill would inject about $1.6 billion into the public education system, boosting funding for almost every school district in the state although a few would be left out. It also wouldn’t renew a soon-expiring program that awards supplemental state funds to more than 150 districts to offset a decade-old property tax cut — a major concern for education officials who depend on the funding. A provision in the bill that would award some grant money to make up for the loss isn’t enough, they told the committee Tuesday.
“My districts are going to lose,” said Mike Motheral, executive director of the Texas Small Rural School Finance Coalition. He said he represents 14 West Texas school districts that could lose up as much as 53 percent of their state revenue with the end of the state aid program.
“One of my districts will lose $4.5 million and they have a $10.5 million budget,” he said.
When the Legislature reduced property taxes by a third in 2006, it guaranteed school districts like the ones Motheral represents at least the same amount of funding they received in 2005-06 through a state aid initiative. The extra aid expires Sept. 1, so many districts have been asking for an extension to avoid falling off a funding cliff. About 156 school districts currently receive such aid.
As written, the bill proposes letting the initiative providing extra state aid expire and instituting a $100 million two-year grant program, prioritizing districts that would lose money through the new funding formulas. That’s not enough to cushion the blow, school officials told the committee Tuesday.
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Numbers released Monday along with the bill show that about 35 of the state’s 1,200 school districts and charters would lose funding in 2018 and 58 would lose funding in 2019. The rest would see basic funding increase from $5,140 to $5,350 per student annually thanks to an increase in transportation funding and more money for students with dyslexia.
Many school officials and advocates who testified on the bill Tuesday said it leaves too many behind.
“We want a bill that has no losers,” said Christy Rome, executive director of Texas School Coalition, which represents mostly wealthier school districts.
Here’s HB21. I agree with Christy Rome and Mike Motheral. There shouldn’t be any losers in this. As much as HISD and the other districts affected by recapture should be made right, it should not come at the effect of these other districts. The right answer is the put enough money in to fix the formulas. Easy to say, and Lord only knows what kind of reception this gets in the Senate. But this is what it comes down to, and what needs to happen. The Chron has more.