Side-By-Side Comparison of Major Education Provisions
Fourth Called Special Session
House Bill 1, House Bill 2, and House Joint Resolution 1
Senate Bill 1, Senate Bill 2, and Senate Bill 5
As of November 16, 2023
| Provision | House Bill 1 and House Bill 2As Passed by Select Committee on Educational Opportunity and Enrichment | Senate Bill 1, Senate Bill 2, and Senate Bill 5As Passed by Senate |
| Total Funding for Foundation School Program, Education Savings Account, and School Safety | HB 1 provides $7.5 billion for the biennium: 2023-45 school year is $1.8 billion and 2024-25 is $5.7 billion. Cost increases to $11.1 billion annually by 2028. HB 1 contains Education Savings Account provisions capped at $500 million for the current biennium. Provides an additional $1.1 billion for school safety in HB 2/HJR 1 (outside of HB 1 amount). | SB 2 provides $5.2 billion for the biennium: 2023-24 is $2.5 billion and 2024-25 is $2.7 billion. Cost increases to $3.1 billion annually by 2028. SB 1 contains Education Savings Account provisions capped at $500 million for the current biennium. Provides an increase for school safety allotment within SB 2 amount. SB 5 was also passed separately and provided an $800 million increase to school safety through grants and an increase is the school safety allotment. |
| Teacher Pay Increase | Teacher retention bonus for 2023-24 continued through basic allotment increase in 2024-25 and beyond: $4,000 bonus for full-time teachers, nurses, counselors, and librarians. $2,000 for part-time teachers, nurses, counselors, and librarians. | Teacher retention bonus for 2023-24 continued as an allotment in 2024-25 and beyond: 5,000 or fewer students enrolled for that school year, $10,000 per classroom teacher; More than 5,000 students enrolled for that school year, $3,000 per classroom teacher. |
| Basic Allotment Increase | Increases basic allotment from $6,160 to $6,700 in 2024-25Creates an inflationary adjustment beginning 2026-27 based on the 10 year average of the Texas Consumer Price Index | Increases the Basic Allotment from $6,160 to $6,235 in 2023-24, a $75 increase, removes 30% minimum of increase must be spent on teacher salary increases |
| School Safety Funding | HB 2 provides an additional $1.1 billion annually (not included in HB 1) through a school safety allotment of 0.01 per enrolled student and campus funding based on the following size:$50,000 per campus for under 500 students; $100,000 per campus for 500 to 1,000 students; $150,000 per campus for 1,000 to 1,500 students; $175,000 per campus for 1,500 to 2,000 students; $200,000 per campus for over 2,000 students HJR 1 provides the method of finance and establishes a School Safety Fund to be administered by the Comptroller. It uses funds from various sources, including the General Revenue Fund, Highway Fund, Rainy Day Fund, and end of year school settle-up. | SB 2 and SB 5 Increases school safety allotment from $10 per student to $20 per student and campus allotment from $15,000 to $30,000 per campus. |
| Teacher Incentive Allotment | Amends TIA to include designations “acknowledged”.Changes the designation of nationally board-certified teachers from “recognized” to “nationally board-certified.Increases allotment amounts. | Amends TIA to include designations “acknowledged”.Changes the designation of nationally board-certified teachers from “recognized” to “nationally board-certified.Increases allotment amounts. |
| Retire/Rehire Grant Program | Creates an Employee Retiree Teacher Reimbursement Grant Program to reimburse school districts that employ TRSretirees for the contribution amount that the district would be responsible for paying | N/A |
| Other 2023-24 School Year Funding Formula Provisions | Creates a fine arts allotment for students in grades 6 through 12Increases the CCMR outcomes bonus for qualifying special education graduates from $2,000 to $4,000.Creates a $60 million PVS hardship grant program for 2023-24. | N/A |
| Other 2024-25 Funding Formulas Provision | Increases the minimum salary schedule. Increase the small and mid-sized allotments.Creates an allotment for special education full individual and initial evaluations. Increases the compensatory education weights. Expands the bilingual education allotment. Creates an allotment for students in a pre-K class provided through a community-based child-care provider. Creates an allotment for military transition aid.Adjusts recapture for districts losing the formula transition grant. Creates a regional disaster insurance variation allotment. Repeals the cap on the fast growth allotment. | Extends the Formula Transition Grant to fiscal year 2025. |
| Other 2025-26 Funding Formula Provisions | Transitions to special education funding to intensity of service weights determined by Commissioner. Begins increasing the $60 million charter schools facilities funding cap to $300 million by 2030.Creates an allotment for offering an advanced mathematics pathway and other programs of study.Provides additional funding to a district that experiences an ADA decline of more than 5%. Increases the CTE allotment from $50 to $150 for students enrolled on a P-TECH or New Tech campus. Adds pre-K students to those entitled to the early education allotment. Increases the mentor allotmentIncreases the transportation allotment to $1.75 for special education students. | N/A |
| STAAR Assessment and A-F Accountability System | A-F Accountability formulas remain the same through 2025-26. TEA must use the 2022 Accountability Manual. Creates a Texas Commission on Assessment and Accountability commission and sunsets the entirety of Chapter 39 (accountability provisions) on August 31, 2026. | N/A |
| Annual Meeting on Special Education for School Boards | At least once each year, the board of trustees of a school district or the governing body of an open-enrollment charter school shall include during a public meeting a discussion of the performance of students receiving special education services at the district or school. TEA by rule shall adopt a set of performance indicators for measuring and evaluating the quality of learning and achievement for students receiving special education services at the school district or open-enrollment charter school to be considered at a meeting. The indicators must include performance on the college, career, or military and other readiness outcomes. | N/A |
| Major Education Savings Account Provisions | HB 1 | SB 1 |
| Eligibility | Any student who attended a public school for 90% of the time the previous year; a student entering Pre-K or Kindergarten; or a student who attended a private school or homeschool the preceding year. | Any student who attended a public school for 90% of the time the previous year; a student entering Pre-K or Kindergarten; or a student who attended a private school or homeschool the preceding year. |
| Priority | Children with a disability in a household with total annual income at or below 400% of the federal poverty guidelines; Children in a household with total annual income at or below 185% of the federal poverty guidelines; Children in a household with total annual income between 185% and 400% of the federal poverty guidelines; Children in a household with total annual income at or above 400% of the federal poverty guidelines. Does not require private schools to accept the priority students | Not more than 40% going to children who are educationally disadvantaged; Not more than 30% to children in a household with annual income between 185% and 500% of the federal poverty guidelines; Not more than 20% to children with a disability, and the remainder to any eligible child.Does not require private schools to accept the priority students |
| Annual ESA Amount Per Student | Participants would get 75% of the estimated statewide average funding per student in ADA as determined by the commissioner and including funding under Chapters 46 (related to I&S funding), 48, and 49, including the average state contribution to TRS per student. This is estimated to be over $10,000 per student. A homeschooled student would be eligible for $1,000 per year The ESA amount per student is estimated to increase to $10,800 by 2028 due to changes in public school funding formulas | Participants are eligible for $8,000 per year. Unused ESA dollars carry forward and can be used by the student at a later time. A homeschooled student would be eligible for $1,000 per year |
| Out Year Fiscal Implications of ESA | The current appropriation from the 88th Regular Session for a voucher program is $500 million for the 2024-25 biennium, but HB 1 fiscal note anticipates a cost of to $2.3 billion by 2028. | The current appropriation from the 88th Regular Session for a voucher program is $500 million for the 2024-25 biennium. It does not estimate cost beyond the current biennium. |
| Hold Harmless Funding for School Districts Losing Students to Voucher Program | N/A | School districts with fewer than 5,000 enrolled students experiencing a decline in enrollment as a result of the program would be entitled to receive $10,000 per participating child residing in the district for three years. |
| Testing and Accountability Requirements for Participants of ESA | For all enrolled participants, including homeschoolers accepting $1,000, an annual administration of a nationally norm-referenced assessment instrument or the appropriate assessment instrument required under Subchapter B (STAAR) Two years of failing the STAAR/Norm referenced test removes students from the ESA program. No A-F Accountability requirements of private school or vendors | For all enrolled participants, including homeschoolers accepting $1,000, an annual administration of a nationally norm-referenced assessment instrument or the appropriate assessment instrument required under Subchapter B (STAAR) No A-F Accountability requirements of private school or vendors |
| Comptroller Audit and Reporting Requirements | The comptroller shall contractwith a private entity to audit accounts and program participant eligibility data not less than once per year to ensure compliance with applicable law and program requirements The comptroller shall require that the certified educational assistance organizations collaborate to compile program data and produce an annual longitudinal report. | The comptroller shall contractwith a private entity to audit accounts and program participant eligibility data not less than once per year to ensure compliance with applicable law and program requirements The comptroller shall require the certified educational assistance organizations to compile program data and produce an annual longitudinal report with specific indicators and demographic information. |
| Comptroller Promotion of ESA Program | The comptroller or the comptroller’s designee may enter into contracts or agreements and engage in marketing, advertising, and other activities to promote, market, and advertise the development and use of the program. The comptroller may use money from the program fund to pay for activities | The comptroller or the comptroller’s designee may enter into contracts or agreements and engage in marketing, advertising, and other activities to promote, market, and advertise the development and use of the program. The comptroller may use money from the program fund to pay for activities |
| Education Assistance Organizations | The comptroller may certify one or more educational assistance organizations to support the administration of the program | The comptroller may certify up to five educational assistance organizations to support the administration of the program |
| Special Education Service Notification | Provision stating parents must be notified that private school or vendor is not subject to federal or state laws regarding special education services in the same manner as a public school. | Provision stating parents must be notified that private school or vendor is not subject to federal or state laws regarding special education services in the same manner as a public school. |
| Sunset Review of ESA Program | The Sunset Advisory Commission review of the Texas Education Agency must include a review of the ESA program. The next review date for TEA is scheduled for 2028-2029. TEA’s last review was 2014-2015. | N/A |
