At Christian academies across Katy and greater Houston, parents can start re-enrolling their children for next fall on Jan. 5. A week later, Texas lawmakers convene with a bill already on file to end the program that helps families pay private-school tuition.
State Sen. José Menéndez, a San Antonio Democrat, filed Senate Bill 106 to repeal Texas Education Freedom Accounts. The proposal keeps the existing rules in place for money transferred for the 2026–27 school year. Critically, it offers no guarantee of another year of funding for children already enrolled. This year’s standard private-school award is $10,474 per child.
When lawmakers debated the original voucher bill in 2025, Menéndez joined a statement in the Senate Journal that predicted, “ESAs will almost certainly be utilized only by wealthy families.” The senators also argued that private schools receiving the money would face fewer accountability requirements than public schools.
The Texas comptroller’s first-year numbers reveal who actually used the program. As of Oct. 1, about 72,500 students with funded accounts lived in households earning at or below twice the federal poverty level. That’s 62% of the 116,574 students with funded accounts and, for a family of four, an income of $66,000 or less. Statewide, the comptroller counted 31,207 Hispanic students and 14,236 Black students with funded accounts.
The same report counted 1,712 students with funded accounts living within Katy ISD boundaries, 1,350 in Lamar CISD and 2,829 in Fort Bend ISD. Those figures are based on where students live and include private-school and home-education participants. The report gives statewide breakdowns by race and income and only overall totals for those districts.
What Does the Money Cover?
At Katy school Berean Christian Academy, this year’s tuition for grades 1–5 is $14,825. Applying the full standard award to tuition would leave $4,351 before fees or school aid. If the voucher went away, a family paying that balance would have to find another $10,474 to keep the seat at this year’s rate.
Other schools in Katy Christian Magazine’s local directory, also available in Spanish, have January deadlines too. Epiphany of the Lord Catholic School asks new families to apply by Jan. 8. Its published policy says the full year’s tuition becomes nonrefundable upon enrollment. St. John XXIII College Preparatory’s regular freshman application deadline is Jan. 15. At its current tuition of $22,100, even the full standard award leaves $11,626 before school aid and fees.
Alex Narvaez, a Houston-area father of three, told KERA News that bullying and safety concerns led him to look for another school for his sons. His family earns less than $66,000 a year, and he said private school tuition was out of reach. This year, the vouchers cover more than $30,000 in tuition for his sons at St. Anne’s Catholic School in Tomball.
“If they repeal it, then there’s no chance of me being able to afford tuition for three kids at private school,” Narvaez said.
The program also provides up to $2,000 for home education and up to $30,000 in total for some students with disabilities at participating private schools. More than 18% of students with funded accounts had a qualifying disability in the October report. On Oct. 26, the comptroller said more than 100,000 students were still on the waitlist.
Who Wants to End the Program, and Why?
The Texas State Teachers Association said in February that it would work to end the program. In September, it opposed a request for more voucher funding, arguing that public schools are already underfunded and questioning how many awards were subsidizing tuition families had already been paying. KERA reported, citing state data, that 53% of participants had previously attended private school.
Both the Texas State Teachers Association and Texas AFT endorsed Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa, who campaigned on rolling back vouchers. The national American Federation of Teachers and its Texas and Houston chapters contributed a combined $345,000 to her campaign, according to the Houston Chronicle’s review of state filings through Oct. 24.
Two groups that oppose vouchers, Our Schools Our Democracy and Every Texan, projected a $5.3 million loss in state funding for Katy ISD this school year as students leave the district, the Katy-Fulshear Times reported.
Hinojosa will take office with a Democratic House and a Republican Senate. Repeal would require both chambers to pass a bill.
If enacted, the proposal would take effect Sept. 1, 2027, unless two-thirds of the elected members in each chamber vote for immediate effect. The bill would send uncommitted money in the program fund to general revenue. Any additional money for public schools would be decided through the state budget.
Before lawmakers vote on repeal, Menéndez and Hinojosa should say whether they would keep the accounts funded for one more year for children already enrolled whose families can’t cover tuition on their own. The teachers unions that backed Hinojosa should say whether they would support that protection.
Feature photo by Alexander Grey on Unsplash
