The latest school finance news from The Texas Tribune.
Lawmakers say local property taxes are getting too high. School leaders say the taxes are increasing because the state is taking on a smaller share of public education funding. Hey Texplainer, what's really happening? Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2018/02/15/TT-propertytaxes.png)
State lawmakers are not solely to blame for the increasing burden on local property taxpayers, but they are certainly as responsible as anyone else. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/12/UP9A0022.JPG)
You wouldn’t be out of line wondering why Texas school finance didn’t get fixed in 2017. Or 2015. Or 2013. But it’s because this is a hard policy problem and a harder political one. The prompt now is that property taxes have gotten so far out of hand that lawmakers have no choice but to act. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2018/01/23/_TX500_Taylor_BristerTT.jpg)
The Texas Commission on Public School Finance will meet for the first time this week as it develops legislative recommendations for overhauling the state's beleaguered system for funding public education. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/03/15/Huberty_Larry_Taylor.jpg)
In the wake of a federal report finding Texas was failing its kids with disabilities, educators say the state is to blame and that Texas legislators first suggested cutting back special education services to keep costs low. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/12/13/Seal_SpecialEducation-02_TT.jpg)
The end of the year is when property owners have to pay their taxes — an increasingly large bill in Texas that’s a key part of the state’s rickety school finance system. Here’s a sampling of columns tracking that debate in 2017. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/PropertyTax.jpg)
Take a look back at our 2017 public education coverage and read about how the Texas Legislature failed to overhaul the school finance system, how several Texas students and teachers are still recovering from a devastating hurricane, and more. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/10/31/Little_Lights_Daycare_1_ES_TT.jpg)
As state cuts to public education become more common, school communities must frequently debate where and how to trim their limited budgets without harming students or teachers. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/12/13/Carthage_football_3.jpg)
The infestation of Norwegian rats in a state building where health regulators work is not only a big, embarrassing mess — it's a metaphor for a persistent problem in Texas government. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/d5aee2dea29bd95bf39fb750b61bf8b5/.HHSC%20NOPE)
At a House Public Education Committee hearing Thursday, superintendents rattled off long lists of unexpected costs they incurred after Hurricane Harvey swept through the Texas coast. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/10/12/Morath_Public_Ed_ER_TT.jpg)
Doug Killian, the current superintendent of Pflugerville ISD, was recently named to the Texas Legislature's interim commission to study school finance. Read what he had to say about the challenges facing the commission. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/10/11/Doug_Killian_TT.jpg)
The Texas Education Agency is offering state funding to as many as 157 school districts and charter schools that saw lower attendance or closed facilities due to the storm, which could ultimately cost the state an estimated $400 million. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/09/05/Cy-Fair_school_flood_MS_TT.jpg)
For the first time in Texas, charter schools will receive funding from the state to pay for leasing and maintaining buildings and facilities. That has charter advocates excited — and their critics furious. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/01/24/Shcool_Choice_Rally_LS_TT.jpg)
Last year, the state forced Texas City ISD to annex, or absorb, its neighboring district. After months of work, efforts to improve conditions for students from annexed La Marque ISD hit a significant speed bump: Hurricane Harvey. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/09/08/Lamarque_Texas_City_3_BD_TT.jpg)
At Coleman High School, the failure of legislation to raise teacher pay and fix the school finance system at the Capitol means another year of finding creative ways to attract new teachers and do more for the students. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/25/Coleman_HS_12_TT.jpg)
The Texas Legislature's special session ended with a bang, but it wasn't the sound of the property tax bill the governor was hoping for. Will he call state lawmakers back for more? Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/15/7C2A1433.JPG)
The Texas House voted Tuesday to swallow a bitter pill and accept a version of a school finance bill that had $1.5 billion less in funding for schools than the lower chamber initially approved. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/15/7C2A1479.JPG)
Lawmakers moved closer Monday to giving some — but not all — Texans more say over the property taxes they must pay cities, counties and special-purpose districts each year. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/14/7C2A0918.jpg)
The Texas House and Senate tentatively passed each other’s priority school finance bills Monday, preparing to discuss potential compromises with two days left in the special session. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/11/__95I9014_finale.jpg)
In Austin — the poster child for property tax recapture in Texas right now — the school district is telling taxpayers they’ll be sending $2.6 billion to the state over the next five years. That's inspiring some crazy ideas. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/01/APrice-ATX-3.jpg)