Texas Senate Passes School-Voucher, Immigration Bills Overnight

In a chaotic afternoon that turned into a late night, the Texas Senate passed controversial education and border security bills, adding pressure on the House to also sign off on the proposals and send them to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk.

The Senate’s action caught many by surprise as three committees suddenly met and passed the bills with little public notice or testimony. In a room generally reserved for news conferences, senators and staff crowded around a podium to advance education bills and a border wall proposal. …

Lawmakers have remained under pressure from Abbott to send him a law that would allow public taxpayer dollars to be used for private school tuition. Abbott has spent tremendous political capital on the issue and called lawmakers back to Austin multiple times, but has yet to see any version cross his desk.

[Senate leaders decided that they’d already heard enough debate in the previous special session over essentially the same legislative language. SB1 would create a fully funded voucher program, which moderates and Democrats have opposed for its drain on funding for public schools. After seeing what’s been happening at public schools the past several weeks, the idea that they are somehow more accountable than private schools for educational performance seems even more laughable than usual. — Ed]