Texas House files its version of education savings account program
AUSTIN (Nexstar) — State Representative Brad Buckley, R-Salado, filed his version of the education savings account (ESA) program along with two other education bills that relate to public school financing and accountability.
Buckley’s version of the ESA would provide each eligible student with “85% of the estimated statewide average amount of state and local funding per student in average daily attendance for the applicable school year,” according to HB 3, the ESA bill.
Students with a disability would receive more money. The amount of money would depend on how much money the student’s public school district would have been entitled to if they enrolled into public school. The amount cannot exceed $30,000 a year.
Home school students can also benefit from the program but can not receive more than $2,000 per year.
The bill also prioritizes which students will receive the program funding if there are too many applicants in one year. The prioritization looks like this:
| Priority Ranking | Requirements |
| 1 | Students with disabilities whose family income is at or below 500% of the Federal Poverty Line (FPL) |
| 2 | Students whose family income is at or below 200% of the FPL. |
| 3 | Students whose family income is above 200% and below 500% of the FPL. |
| 4 | Every other student whose family income is above 500% of the FPL |
How does it compare to SB 2?
Senate Bill 2, the Senate’s version of the ESA program filed by Sen. Brandon Creighton, R – Conroe, would give $10,000 a year to every eligible student in the program attending an accredited private school in Texas, $11,500 for students with disabilities, and $2,000 for home school children.
Eighty percent of SB 2 also prioritizes low-income families and students with disabilities. In that version of the bill, low-income is considered at 500% of the FPL. In that version of the program, all students in that range of income would have the same chance to be a part of the program.
