AUSTIN — The 88th Texas Legislative regular session came to a close Monday evening, but a special session looms.
The session closed with several top GOP priorities left unresolved including property taxes, strengthening the grid, school choice and border security.
Chamber leaders spent much of the final day still attempting to compromise on property taxes — the House was firm on providing an appraisal cap while the Senate is against a cap of any kind — to avoid a special session. Those moves were unsuccessful.
“I expect to have a proclamation from the governor in the next 12 hours, so I would not pack your bags just yet,” House Speaker Dade Phelan said, before formally ending the regular session.
This session the Legislature passed more than 1,200 bills including 744 House bills and 501 Senate bills.
Even so, Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has already said he will call a special session regarding a school voucher program. Abbott has made school choice in the form of education savings accounts, or ESAs, his top priority, frequently traveling around the state to promote the measure. ESAs allow for state dollars to follow the student including to pay for private and homeschooling options.
“Failure to expand the scope of school choice to something close to the Senate version or the original House version of the Senate bill will necessitate special sessions,” Abbott said previously. “Parents and their children deserve no less.”
The House continually fought back against any voucher-type program, previously passing a budget rider that would bar state dollars to pay for private school vouchers and similar programs. Discussion surrounding ESAs still continued and the final budget includes $5 billion in additional funding for public education, contingent on enactment of legislation, such as ESAs.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a Republican, has already listed 22 items in addition to school choice he would like Abbott to include in a special session call. Those items include election security bills, placing the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms, and creating a mandatory 10-Year prison sentence for criminals committing gun crime, as well as the mentioned GOP priorities.
“While the Senate worked hard all session to efficiently conduct the people’s business, many important issues affecting Texans died in the Texas House,” Patrick said.
“I believe these bills are important for the future of Texas. They will help to significantly reduce property taxes, give parents more choices in their children’s education, secure our border, and ensure our election process is accurate and accountable,” he added.