(NationalUSNews.com) — School districts in Texas are saying that they are expecting huge deficits in funding required for supporting their students and staff and many are placing the blame on Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Many Democrats and school officials believe that Governor Abbott and other Republicans have been working to quietly gut school funding as an act of retaliation for Abbott’s school voucher plan failing in December of 2023.
Founder of the non-profit Cypress Families for Public School, Bryan Henry, claims that the state of Texas has a “historic surplus” of funds but believes that Texas Republicans are willfully “starving school districts” of extra funding. He says that increases in funding is justified because of population growth and inflation. Texas Democrat Congresswoman Gina Hinojosa, agrees with Henry, using the social media platform X to accuse Abbott of blocking funding to Texas public schools as an act of vengeance over the failed school voucher proposal.
Republican Representative has publicly rejected this narrative, responding to a post on X characterizing the funding issue as a political pawn in the school choice debate. Harrison’s reply stated that Texas is spending more on public K–12 education now than it ever has before. However, the Texas American Federation of Teachers (Texas AFT) called his comment “dishonest and misleading” and said that if the funding were analyzed in inflation-adjusted dollars, spending per student had actually decreased by $590 over the past ten years.
Inflation has remained a concern across the board for Americans, and budget strains for many states and cities have become critical due to the nation’s unprecedented border crisis. Many families depend on the public school system, but there has also been an increase in those who are dissatisfied with it and are seeking other options that are affordable for those without the means to pay for private schools.
Governor Abbott has previously stated that he would not sign an education bill that does not include vouchers, much to the frustration of those who believe that voucher systems are nothing more than a ploy to drain public schools of support and create a loophole to publicly fund religious education. In the meantime, many districts are having to make some difficult budget cuts.
Copyright 2024, NationalUSNews.com
