Blog

Request for Special Session: Investments in school finance

May 29, 2023

• Building on Investments Made in HB 3 - Under your leadership, HB 3 (86R) made a historic investment in Texas schools. Texas must continue to invest in what works, while making adjustments to better address the critical and current needs of education systems:
  • Adjust Basic Allotment for Inflation – Both HB 1 and HB 100 contemplated additional formula funding for schools, including an increase in the Basic Allotment. The Legislature heard testimony from multiple stakeholders on the importance of this strategy to address record-high inflation[1] and increase current teacher salaries.
  • Early Education Allotment Adjustment – Both HB 11 and HB 100 as discussed in the regular legislative session included modifying the Early Education Allotment by adding PreKindergarten students to the formula calculations, in addition to Kindergarten-3rd grade students. This modification can help ensure more schools take advantage of offering high-quality, full-day PreK for interested and eligible students. In turn, this will support ongoing efforts under your leadership to improve reading and mathematics proficiency by the third grade, a benchmark that can determine students’ future achievement.
• Provisions related to the Teacher Vacancy Task Force Recommendations – For over a year, the Teacher Vacancy Task Force that you established studied and discussed strategies to support Texas teachers. The Legislature has the opportunity to implement key provisions that stand to bolster and develop a high-quality teacher workforce:
  • Teacher Residency Program Support - Creating a sustainable, affordable teacher residency pathway to ensure more students have access to teachers who receive strong, on-the-job preparation can decrease historic attrition occurring across Texas. For the 2022-2023 school year, nearly 30% of newly hired teachers held no teaching certificate.^[2] Given that teachers are the greatest in-school factor on student achievement, a focus on rigorous teacher pathways not only strengthens the profession but will also improve student learning and outcomes. 
  • Teacher Workforce Supports - Proposed legislation this session (HB 11, SB 9, & HB 100) also included several other benefits for teachers as recommended by the Teacher Vacancy Task Force such as adjustments to the minimum salary scale, allowing teachers’ children to be eligible for enrollment in PreKindergarten, increasing the Mentor Program Allotment, and providing waivers for the cost of certification fees for candidates who receive certification in special education or bilingual education. These strategies support a comprehensive approach to ensuring our Texas teacher workforce is supported and prepared to meet the needs of our students.