$8.5 billion in public education funding

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA)-- On Wednesday, a public education funding bill landed on Gov. Greg Abbott's desk. The bill provides $8.5 billion dollars.

House bill 2 will mostly go into effect in September.

While the bill may provide some relief to budget deficits across school districts, it does have restricted use of funds for specific purposes.

For example, when it comes to teacher pay; only teachers with at least three years of experience qualify for a raise.

" It doesn't address other instructional personnel, like, you know, counselors and, and, instructional coaches and even coordinators see in central office that, go above and beyond in getting those teachers prepared to provide instruction," said Gustavo Reveles, spokesperson of Canutillo ISD.

School districts are funded based on their attendance, it's called a per student allotment. Yet local school districts haven't seen an increase in their allotments since 2019.

"It didn't go far enough. We need to make sure that, you know, they match at the very least, the inflation rate that is plaguing school districts," said Reveles.

Socorro ISD is expected t receive about $26.1 million dollars, saying "While the funding provides some relief, about $17.9 million is restricted for specific uses and won’t significantly improve our cash flow in the upcoming fiscal year. The district continues to explore cost-saving measures and revenue-generating opportunities, but we still anticipate the need for short-term borrowing to support operations next year."

Ysleta ISD, who's facing a multi-million dollar deficit saying in part; "It likely won’t be enough to cover our entire budget deficit but exact figures are still being finalized. We’ll have a clearer picture once we complete our internal budget projections in the coming weeks."

Abbott expressing his support for the bill in a press release:

“Now is the time to make Texas No. 1 in educating our children," said Governor Abbott. "House Bill 2 ensures that our schools are funded better than ever, teacher pay and student funding are at all time highs, reading and math performance will improve, and students will be better prepared for the workforce. The foundation is now in place for Texas education to start climbing the ranks."