History Of School Finance In Texas

I had planned on preparing my own article on the history of school finance in Texas so that Annex readers and others interested in the business before the Special Session of the Texas Legislature could have some background about the system going back to its earlies times.

In working on that, I realized that many others had already done the same thing and done so, I dare say, better and more extensively than I could. So, I’d instead like to refer you to a number of links on the history of school finance in Texas in hopes that we all may gain a little insight about the historical context in which the current debate falls.

The Center for Public Policy Priorities has up this history of school finance from the Edgewood case (1984) forward.

Coalition to invest in Texas Schools has a very brief primer from the Gilmer-Aikin Act (1949) forward.

Latino Education Policy in Texas has this timeline going back to the Education Act of 1839 (a law of the Republic of Texas). I’d recommend reading this before reading anything else.

TEA has a history on its website, too. It goes back to annexation, but mainly deals with the period from the rural high school law of 1911 forward and dwells in particular on House Bill 72 (1984), Senate Bill 1 (1995) and Senate Bill 7 (1993)—all important legislation. SB 1 was, in fact, probably the most sweeping education reform in Texas in the 20th century.

IDRA has several pieces worth a read if you really want to get a handle on school finance and a grasp for multiple viewpoints on the issues. Check out this piece and this piece, both of which look at the 2005 decision in West Orange Cove, which triggered the June 1 deadline the Lege is now up against.

Plano ISD has a fairly biased look (they are, after all, a “donor” district) at Robin Hood I’m recommending because it has some hard-number figures that are worth looking at.

An article in today’s Dallas Morning News looks at two districts, one wealthy and one property-poor and at some of the fund-raising mechanisms used by wealthy schools to offset their “recaptured” tax dollars.

Some of the Texas Supreme Court’s opinions on school finance cases contain good reading as well. You can find several of the more recent ones here.

Texans for Fair Funding has a links page here that will direct you to numerous additional sources. The Equity Center also has numerous resources.

Also, don’t forget to check out the Joint Select Committee on Public School Finance’s 2003 report which has some historical background but mainly lots of information on various solutions the state could (or could have) considered for finance and education reform.
Finally, the Texas Supreme Court has a brief primer on school finance challenges. It’s a bit dated, but gives excellent background information.

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