OP / ED
Today, a new poll from Z to A Research confirmed what educators already knew to be true: Nearly two-thirds of Texans are opposed to voucher programs in any form, fashion, or dressing. These results arrive ahead of the Texas House Committee on Public Education’s Tuesday hearing on House Bill 3. HB 3 would pull thousands of taxpayer dollars per student from public schools to subsidize private school education. Texas AFT will testify against the bill on behalf of Texas educators and the millions of students they serve in public schools – all of whom would be directly harmed should HB 3 pass.
Over 400 Texas AFT educators have traveled to the Capitol today to make their voices heard during our legislative advocacy day. During visits with lawmakers and staff, they will share firsthand their experience in the classroom over the last two years, their anxieties about layoffs and campus closures, and their need for lawmakers to fully fund public schools. Of course, with the HB 3 hearing the very next day, they will also urge their representatives to vote in their districts and reject this voucher program.
