School choice legislation has been filed in the Texas House, setting up another battle over Gov. Greg Abbott’s top priority as new polling shows a majority of Texans support the issue.
In 2023, school choice was blocked in the House after a coalition of Democrats and a minority of Republicans opposed it. Since then, many of those Republican opponents have been replaced after Abbott actively campaigned against them in last year’s primaries.
Earlier this month, Abbott reaffirmed school choice as a top priority in his State of the State address. Just days later, the Senate passed Senate Bill 2, its version of the plan. Now, the House has introduced its own proposal, House Bill 3, authored by State Rep. Brad Buckley (R–Salado), who has also been reappointed as chairman of the House Public Education Committee.
While SB 2 and HB 3 share the same goal—creating an Education Savings Account program that allows parents to use state funds for private school tuition, tutoring, and other educational expenses—they differ in a few areas.
Under SB 2, students attending private schools would receive a flat $10,000 per year, while homeschooled students would receive $2,000. Notably, the bill does not impose a cap on overall program costs, allowing funding to grow based on participation.
Meanwhile, HB 3 calculates ESA funding at 85 percent of the state’s per-student public school funding, translating to approximately $8,000–$10,000 per student. Special needs students could receive up to $30,000, a significantly higher amount than what is offered in the Senate plan. However, HB 3 caps the program’s total funding, limiting it to either the amount appropriated in the previous biennium or the cost of serving all eligible students on the waitlist, whichever is greater.
Both chambers have included $1 billion for the program in the preliminary budget, meaning the program’s first year would likely accommodate around 100,000 students.
Another key difference is that HB 3 allows ESA funds to be used for online education, something SB 2 prohibits.
A new WPA Intelligence poll conducted for Club for Growth suggests broad public support for school choice in Texas. The survey, conducted February 16-18, found that 56 percent of Texas voters support establishing an Education Savings Account (ESA) program, with just 36 percent opposed and 8 percent undecided. Support is strongest among Republicans (68 percent), but even a majority of Independents (52 percent) favor the plan.
“School freedom is the civil rights fight of our generation, and it is incredibly popular in Texas,” David McIntosh, President of Club for Growth, told Texas Scorecard. “We urge lawmakers to pass universal school freedom to start putting students first instead of education bureaucrats.”
House Speaker Dustin Burrows has been vocal in his support for school choice, appearing alongside Abbott at a Parent Empowerment rally in San Antonio last week. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has signaled his interest in the issue, stating he would be watching Burrows and the House to ensure they pass school choice. Burrows responded directly, saying, “We will.”
With both Abbott and Trump turning up the pressure, all eyes are now on the House to see whether it delivers on one of Abbott’s top legislative priorities or if opposition will once again block the measure.
