Abbott threatens special sessions if lawmakers don't pass 'meaningful' school choice bill

With the legislative clock ticking down, Gov. Greg Abbott said Sunday that he would veto the Texas House's latest slimmed-down version of a Senate school voucher bill and threatened to call lawmakers back for a special session to hammer out a proposal that would provide "meaningful school choice."

"Texas parents and their children deserve the time and effort it will take to pass critical school choice legislation this session," Abbott said in a tweet Sunday, just a day before the House Public Education Committee was set to take up Senate Bill 8.

The bill, authored by Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, proposed creating education savings accounts and making state funding available to parents for their children's private education. Since the bill moved from the Senate to the House, the number of children eligible for the program has dwindled from most of the 5.5 million Texas students to 800,000.

School choice has become a linchpin this legislative session for Abbott, who has toured numerous private schools across the state to tout the issue.

Read more: https://www.statesman.com/story/news/education/2023/05/16/texas-legislature-abbott-signals-special-sessions-for-school-choice/70220024007/