Texas School Vouchers and Who Gets the Money

Has Texas Passed School Vouchers?

Yes. Texas Education Freedom Accounts, created by Senate Bill 2 in 2025, began paying private school and homeschool costs in the 2026-27 school year. The state deposits money into an account for each approved child, and parents spend it on tuition and other approved costs (SB 2). Technically it is an education savings account, not a classic voucher paid straight to a school, but most Texans and news outlets call it a voucher. The state comptroller runs it.

Who Qualifies for School Vouchers in Texas?

Any Texas child who could enroll in a public school or public pre-K can apply, with no income limit. The child must live in Texas and be a U.S. citizen or national or lawfully admitted to the country, and the parent must be a Texas resident (program site).

Qualifying to apply is not the same as getting money. The Legislature funded far fewer spots than families asked for, so income and disability decide who is funded first. A family earning $66,000 a year with four people sits at the 200% line that separates the second tier from the third, according to the comptroller (June 2026).

How Much Do Texas School Vouchers Pay?

A child going to an approved private school gets $10,474 for 2026-27. The law sets that amount at 85% of the statewide average state and local funding per public school student, which puts the average itself at about $12,322 (SB 2, sec. 29.361).

The disability maximum is rarely reached. Tier 1 awards averaged about $16,000, according to the Texas Standard, and fewer than 30 students were getting the full $30,000, according to the Texas Tribune.

Money arrives in installments. The account manager must deposit at least one-quarter of the year's amount by July 1, half by October 1, the rest by April 1 (SB 2, sec. 29.362). The comptroller may keep up to 3% of the appropriation to run the program and pay the account manager up to 5%.

How the Texas Voucher Lottery Works

When applications exceed the money, a lottery fills the spots tier by tier, and a tier is funded before the next one gets anything. In the first year, the $1 billion ran out inside the second tier, and more awards reached the third tier only as families turned theirs down (comptroller, June 2026; Texas Tribune).

The fourth tier can never get more than 20% of the money, and within it, children who spent at least 90% of the prior year in public school go first (SB 2, sec. 29.3521(d)). Siblings of children already in the program also get priority in the lottery.

Texas School Voucher Applicant Data and Who Got In

More than 274,000 students applied, and most came from low- or middle-income families. A record 43,000 applied on the first day. Nearly 30,000 qualified for the first tier and 79,000 for the second, the comptroller reported (April 2026). The counts were preliminary and self-reported by applicants.

First-year applicants by priority tier (thousands of students)

Category	Value
Tier 1: disability, up to 500% of poverty	K30
Tier 2: up to 200% of poverty	K79
Tiers 3 and 4: above 200% of poverty	K165

Source: Texas Comptroller, April 2, 2026 (tiers 1 and 2, total of more than 274,000). Tiers 3 and 4 derived as the total minus tiers 1 and 2, so it is approximate.

Most families who got money were already paying for private school or homeschooling. About 70% of families who joined or had pending invitations came from private school or homeschool, according to recent data reported by the Texas Tribune. That matters for the budget: a student who was already in private school adds a cost to the state without lowering public school enrollment.

From application to funding, first year (thousands of students)

Category	Value
Applied (April)	K274
Awarded (June)	K102
Funded (September)	K110
Waiting (September)	K106

Sources: Texas Comptroller, April 2 and June 10, 2026; Texas Tribune, September 3, 2026. Counts are rounded 'more than' or 'about' figures from each source, on different dates.

Awards also went unused. By August 5, 20,700 students had given up their funding because the family declined, missed the school-selection deadline, or no school confirmed the child. Two-thirds of them had been in public school, according to the Texas Standard. A private school can turn a student away, and no state or federal law requires a private school to provide accommodations for students with disabilities (Texas Tribune).

Which Schools Are Approved for Texas School Vouchers?

A private school qualifies only if it is accredited, tests its students, and has operated at least 2 school years. The accreditor must be recognized by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission or the Texas Education Agency. The school must also give a national norm-referenced test each year in grades 3 through 12 (SB 2, sec. 29.358; program site). More than 1,600 private schools had opted in by early February 2026, most in the Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth areas (Texas Tribune).

Pre-K and kindergarten providers must be licensed and in good standing with the Department of Family and Protective Services and meet one of several quality standards.

What the Money Can Pay For

Tuition and fees are the main use, but the account also covers other learning costs. Approved uses include textbooks, tests, private tutoring, transportation to an approved provider, educational therapies, uniforms and school meals. Computers and software are limited to 10% of the year’s deposit, and the money may not be used to pay a family member (program site).

How a Texas Education Freedom Account Works, Start to Finish

One Family's Path Through the First Year

1. 1 February to March 2026 Apply online Applications for 2026-27 opened February 4 and closed in March.
2. 2 Spring 2026 Lottery by tier Awards went tier by tier until the money ran out. Everyone else went on the waiting list.
3. 3 By July 15, 2026 Confirm a school or homeschool Families had to confirm private school enrollment, choose the homeschool option, or opt out.
4. 4 July 1, October 1, April 1 Money is deposited At least a quarter by July 1, half by October 1, the rest by April 1.
5. 5 School year Spend on approved costs Tuition, books, tutoring, therapies and other approved costs, paid through the account.

Sources: SB 2, Education Code 29.362; Texas Comptroller, June 10, 2026; Texas Education Freedom Accounts.

What to Do, by Situation

This is general information about the program rules, not legal or financial advice. Open the situation closest to yours.

Texas school vouchers, by situation

Open the one closest to yours.

We are on the waiting list for 2026-27

1. Keep your contact information current in the program portal. Awards have continued to go out as other families turn theirs down.
2. Ask your chosen private school whether it can hold a seat and what happens to tuition if an award comes midyear.
3. Join the 2027-28 interest list on the program site so you hear when applications open.

As of early September 2026, more than 106,000 students were waiting and the comptroller had begun awarding third-tier families (Texas Tribune).

My child has a disability

1. Children with disabilities in households at or below 500% of the poverty line are in the first tier.
2. Before you accept an award, ask the private school in writing which services it will provide. A private school is not required to provide the services your child's IEP lists.
3. Compare the award with the school's full cost. Some specialized schools charge more than $40,000 a year.

The disability maximum is $30,000, but Tier 1 awards averaged about $16,000 (Texas Standard). Under federal rules, a child placed in private school by a parent has no individual right to the special education services a public school would provide (34 CFR 300.137).

We homeschool

1. Homeschooled children can get up to $2,000 a year for approved costs such as curriculum, tutoring and tests.
2. Apply in the same window as private school families and choose the homeschool option.

SB 2, sec. 29.361(b-1), caps homeschool accounts at $2,000 a year.

My child is in public school and we are thinking about leaving

1. Get a written tuition quote and admission decision from the private school before you give up your public school seat.
2. Compare the full cost with the $10,474 award. Ask about fees, transportation, uniforms and meals.
3. Ask which test the school gives. Private schools in the program must give a national norm-referenced test each year in grades 3 through 12.

Public school students in the top income tier get priority within that tier, but the award does not guarantee a private school seat.

How Texas Passed School Vouchers

For years a coalition of Democrats and rural Republicans in the Texas House blocked vouchers, and the 2024 primaries broke it. In November 2023 the House voted 84-63 to strip vouchers from an education bill, with 21 Republicans, mostly from rural districts, joining Democrats (Texas Tribune).

1. November 2023 House strips vouchers, 84-63 21 Republicans join all Democrats.
2. March to May 2024 Primaries remake the House Nine Republican voucher opponents lose, eight to challengers Abbott endorsed, and four who retired are replaced by supporters.
3. April 17, 2025 House passes SB 2 86 of the 88 House Republicans vote yes.
4. May 3, 2025 Abbott signs SB 2 In effect September 1, 2025, with $1 billion for the 2025-27 budget.
5. February 2026 Applications open A record 43,000 apply on the first day.
6. Fall 2026 First funded school year About 110,000 students funded; more than 106,000 waiting.
7. January 2027 Legislature sets the next budget The comptroller asks for $2 billion or more.

Sources: Texas Tribune, November 16, 2023 and May 2, 2025; SB 2 actions, Texas Legislature Online; Texas Comptroller; Texas Tribune, September 3, 2026.

: November 2023: House strips vouchers, 84-63 (21 Republicans join all Democrats.). March to May 2024: Primaries remake the House (Nine Republican voucher opponents lose, eight to challengers Abbott endorsed, and four who retired are replaced by supporters.). April 17, 2025: House passes SB 2 (86 of the 88 House Republicans vote yes.). May 3, 2025: Abbott signs SB 2 (In effect September 1, 2025, with $1 billion for the 2025-27 budget.). February 2026: Applications open (A record 43,000 apply on the first day.). Fall 2026: First funded school year (About 110,000 students funded; more than 106,000 waiting.). January 2027: Legislature sets the next budget (The comptroller asks for $2 billion or more.).

Between the 2024 primaries and runoffs, 9 Republican voucher opponents lost their seats, 8 of them to challengers Abbott endorsed, and 4 who retired were replaced by voucher supporters. In 2025, 86 of the House’s 88 Republicans voted for SB 2 (Texas Tribune). The House passed it April 17, the Senate agreed to the House’s changes April 24, and Abbott signed it May 3 (Texas Legislature Online).

The 2027 Money Fight

Comptroller Don Huffines has asked lawmakers for at least $2 billion for the next two years, double the first budget. He also asked for $226 million for disability accommodations. Funding everyone on the waiting list would cost about $4 billion over two years, and a legislative projection puts the program near $4.8 billion by 2030 (Texas Tribune).

Texas Education Freedom Accounts, billions of dollars per two-year budget

Category	Value
2025-27 (law)	B1
2027-29 (comptroller request)	B2
Full waiting list (estimate)	B4

Sources: SB 2, Education Code 29.3521(c-1); Texas Tribune, September 3, 2026, reporting the comptroller's request and the waiting-list estimate. The request is 'at least' $2 billion.

SB 2 builds growth into the budget process. Each budget request must price every current participant, every child on the waiting list as of January 1, and new siblings (SB 2, sec. 29.3521(a)). The Legislature still sets the final amount.

Texas school vouchers, where things stand

As of September 28, 2026

• Texas Education Freedom Accounts (SB 2) Law, first year 2026-27

  Signed May 3, 2025 and in effect September 1, 2025. Families were first funded for the 2026-27 school year. (source)

• First-year waiting list Agency action, 106,000+ waiting

  About 110,000 students were funded as of early September 2026, and the comptroller had begun awarding families in the third tier. (source)

• Request to double the money for 2028-29 Proposal, $2 billion+

  Comptroller Don Huffines asked the Legislature for more than $2 billion for the next budget, plus $226 million to cover funding increases for families already in the program. Lawmakers decide in the session that starts January 2027. (source)

• Awards turned back Agency action, 20,700 by Aug. 5

  Families declined, missed the school-selection deadline, or were not confirmed by a school. Two-thirds of those students had been in public school. (source)

• 2027-28 applications Proposal, dates not set

  The program site offers an interest list and has not announced the application window. (source)

The Debate Over Texas School Vouchers

Supporters say the program lets parents choose. “The day has arrived that empowers parents to choose the school that’s best for their child,” Abbott said when he signed SB 2 (Texas Tribune). The first year drew more than 274,000 applicants.

Opponents say it moves money from public schools. At the signing, critics warned it would hurt the public schools that serve most low-income students (Texas Tribune). The Texas State Teachers Association said many districts “have been forced to close campuses or eliminate programs to tackle budget deficits” (Texas Tribune).

The first-year data cuts both ways. Low- and middle-income families made up most applicants, which supporters highlight. But most funded families were already outside public schools, and two-thirds of returned awards came from public school students, which critics highlight. What vouchers do to test scores is a separate question; our national school vouchers explainer reviews the studies, which covered narrower programs than Texas’s.

Texas School Voucher Questions

Has Texas passed school vouchers?

Yes. Gov. Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 2 on May 3, 2025, creating Texas Education Freedom Accounts, an education savings account program. The Legislature capped spending at $1 billion for the 2025-27 budget, and the first accounts were funded for the 2026-27 school year.

Which Texas children qualify for school vouchers?

Any child who lives in Texas, is a U.S. citizen or lawfully present, and is eligible to attend a Texas public school or public pre-K can apply. When applications exceed the money, a lottery decides in four priority tiers. Children with disabilities in households at or below 500% of the poverty line come first. Next are households at or below 200%, then 200% to 500%, then everyone else.

How much do Texas school vouchers pay?

$10,474 per child for an approved private school in 2026-27, up to $30,000 for a child with a disability, and up to $2,000 for a homeschooled child. The private school amount is set by law at 85% of the statewide average state and local funding per public school student.

Which schools in Texas are approved for school vouchers?

Accredited private schools that test students each year and have run a campus for at least two school years. The accreditor must be recognized by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission or the Texas Education Agency. More than 1,600 private schools had opted in by early February 2026. A school can still decide not to admit your child.

How many students applied for Texas school vouchers?

More than 274,000 students applied for the first year, according to the comptroller. About 110,000 were funded as of early September 2026, and more than 106,000 were still on the waiting list.

When can I apply for Texas school vouchers for 2027-28?

The state has not announced the 2027-28 application dates. The program site offers an interest list. The first year’s application window opened February 4, 2026 and closed in March.

What You Can Do

1. Join the 2027-28 interest list at the program site if you may apply, and read the tier rules above first.
2. Ask your school district what the program means for its budget. Enrollment drives public school funding, and districts discuss budgets at public board meetings.
3. Tell your legislators what you think of the $2 billion request before the session opens in January 2027. Find your members with Who Represents Me, and use our letter-writing guide.
4. Follow who decides. The comptroller, the lieutenant governor and the House speaker shape the budget; see who runs Texas.
5. Vote. The comptroller’s office, which runs the program, is on the November 3, 2026 ballot. Our Texas voting guide has the deadlines.