FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 1, 2026
CONTACT: mstern@osod.org or communications@everytexan.org
Texas public schools will lose at least $227 million this school year alone to Texas’ new voucher program
Our Schools Our Democracy and Every Texan share the first estimate of public school funding lost to private school vouchers
AUSTIN, Texas – Today, the Houston Chronicle published an estimate of funding lost to Texas public school districts this year due to Texas’ new voucher program, calculated using public information requests and data analysis from OSOD’s Texas Center for Voucher Transparency and Every Texan.
Responsive records from the Comptroller’s PIRs revealed that as of August 10, there are 733 Texas public school districts with at least one student who was awarded and funded for a TEFA voucher account. Houston ISD had 1207 students who were awarded and funded a voucher, which represents the largest loss in the program’s first year.
184 Texas public school districts face an estimated $227 million in statewide WADA-based funding impact this year alone due to vouchers. But TXCVT and Every Texan estimate that another 549 districts with fewer than 30 funded voucher participants will face an additional $67 million in losses—bringing the total estimated cost to public schools to approximately $294 million.
A public school district can’t reduce expenses dollar-for-dollar when a student leaves with a voucher because many costs—such as transportation, utilities, insurance and staffing—are fixed or difficult to reduce immediately.
The impact is particularly significant for smaller districts. Of those 733 districts, 520 enroll fewer than 2,000 students, and 516 have fewer than 30 voucher participants funded. The Comptroller will not publicly report district-level counts below 30, citing student privacy requirements. Protecting student privacy is essential, but districts still need precise information to plan for their financial impact and continue to serve families who choose to attend their public school.
“Voucher supporters promised that vouchers would expand educational options for Texas families without harming Texas public schools. But the total estimated loss of $294 million in funding will mean real harm if districts must respond by cutting teachers, ending programs, reducing student services, limiting extracurricular opportunities, or even closing more schools,” said Dee Carney, Director of the Texas Center for Voucher Transparency at Our Schools Our Democracy. “Texas families, taxpayers, and lawmakers need to know that vouchers have a public school price tag–and what choices may be lost to public school families as a result.”
“The families of 5.4 million Texas students need lawmakers to keep their schools open and thriving, but state leaders instead are pushing costly vouchers,“ said Luis Figueroa, Senior Director for Legislative and Government Affairs for Every Texan. “The next legislative session should focus on increasing the basic allotment, the foundation of Texas public school finance, as well as policy solutions such as enrollment-based funding. These serve the many, not just the few.”
PIR data file available upon request.
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The Texas Center for Voucher Transparency (TXCVT) is an initiative of Our Schools Our Democracy, a Texas-based nonpartisan and independent 501c3 nonprofit organization established to protect the fundamental rights of all Texans to a free, public education. TXCVT supports transparency, fiscal responsibility, and fairness in the implementation of the $1 billion taxpayer-funded Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) voucher program.
Every Texan believes that social justice requires public policy. Since its founding in 1985, Every Texan (formerly the Center for Public Policy Priorities) has leveraged public policy to expand opportunity and equity for Texans of all backgrounds. We are an independent nonprofit organization that researches, analyzes, and advocates for public policies to achieve equitable access to quality health care, food security, education, and good jobs. Our bold, research-driven legislative priorities dare Texas leaders to make Texas the best state for hard-working people and their families.