Texas Legislature pass $ 321.3B budget

Palestine Herald-Press
Ali Linan CNHI Texas statehouse reporter
May 28,2023

AUSTIN — The Texas Legislature agreed to a $321.3 billion all-funds budget on Saturday which will allocate state funding for the next two fiscal years.

The final budget allocates $144 billion from the general fund and includes funding for property tax cuts, border security, water infrastructure, retired teacher cost-of-living adjustments and more. However, it did not change much around public education.

“House Bill 1 makes historic investments that will have a lasting impact on the state of Texas,” said state Rep. Greg Bonnen, R-Friendswood, who laid out the bill.

The current budget was crafted with a record-breaking $32.7 billion budget surplus. This brought the total available general state funding to $188.2 billion.

Some of the top expenditures include $17.6 billion to replace local property tax revenues with state money. A combination of investments made in public education means the state will be paying for more than 50% of the costs, where previously it was below that threshold, Bonnen said.

However, these investments do not include a teacher pay raise and additional allotment funding per student. It also does not include money for a school voucher program, often referred to as education savings accounts, or ESAs.

Bonnen said instead education funding will include $6.9 billion to help reduce recapture, an equity distribution formula, $3.2 billion to fund enrollment growth, $589 million to cover increases to health care premiums and $5 billion for retired public school employees through a supplemental payment as well as a cost-of-living adjustment.

“A vote for House Bill 1 is a vote for the biggest increase in state funding and state support for public education,” Bonnen said.

Lawmakers, including San Antonio Democrat Trey Martinez Fischer, pushed back on the bill stating that he did not believe the state can claim that it is investing more in schools when it did not increase student allotment funding, a primary request by state teacher associations.

Martinez Fischer said while the budget places funds into other important state programs including money for retired teachers, which he supported, it did not include a pay raise for teachers or funding he believed would go directly into classrooms.

“You will find a number of things that you can justify your vote for, but as it relates to me and what I care about and what I see, I cannot justify going home at a time of record surplus, at a time with money still in the bank … I cannot go home and look the teachers at (the schools) in my neighborhood (in the eyes) and say that we did something for them,” Martinez Fischer said

ADDITIONAL BUDGET ALLOCATIONS

The budget also directs $5.1 billion toward border security funding that is up from previous $4.6 billion in the current biennium. This will be distributed across 13 agencies with $2.3 billion going to the state military department, $1.4 billion to the Office of the Governor and $1.2 billion to the Department of Public Safety.

About $1 billion will go toward the state recently passed Water Fund that will address the state’s aging infrastructure.

The approved budget also fully funds projected case growth in CHIP, foster care, adoption and permanency care assistance programs. It dedicates $80.8 billion for Medicaid for the biennium and $9.4 billion for community mental health services for adults and children in crisis,

It also allocates $447 million for the state's essential women's health programs including Healthy Texas Women, family planning, and breast and cervical cancer cancer services, an increase of $160.1 million over current funding, Bonnen said.

Bonnen also pointed out that the budget includes $548 million for the Department of Family Protective Services, which has been under scrutiny for years after it was found that children were sleeping in offices and hotel rooms and reports of abuse at centers were brought to light.

Of the total to DFPS, $97.1 million will expand community based care, or CBCs, into additional regions of the state. Texas has been working to transition its foster care services from state control to community partnerships.

“This is a monumental investment in the agency that will help to transform the quality and the level of care that we provide to our state's most vulnerable youth,” Bonnen said.

WHAT’S NEXT?

The state’s budget is put together and finalized before all bills are passed in the regular session. Because of this, there are several contingencies placed within the budget for potential future legislation that may be passed in the final days of the regular session or in a special session.

About $17 billion worth of commitments remain in this limbo, as of Sunday afternoon. The last day of the session is May 29.

The Senate passed the budget 29-2 on Friday and the House passed it 124-22 on Saturday. The budget now heads to the Comptroller of Special Accounts to ensure the budget is balanced, then it heads to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a Republican who presides over the senate, praised the final budget.

“As our economy continues rapidly growing into the middle of the 21st century, it is more important than ever that we double down on the conservative principles that have brought prosperity to millions of Texans,” he said. “Our budget for the 2024-2025 biennium is within all constitutional spending limits, does not exceed population growth times inflation, and addresses key priorities for Texans statewide.”

BUDGET BREAKDOWN

Here is a basic breakdown of the Legislature's general revenue allocations. The fiscal year begins Sept. 1.

General government

• FY 2023-24: $6.67 billion
• FY 2024-25: $2,638,555,564

Health and human services

• FY 2023-24: $20,331,003,810
• FY 2024-25: $20,666,492,680

Agencies of education

• FY 2023-24: $31,043,363,419
• FY 2024-25: $28,369,128,690

The judiciary

• FY 2023-24: $438,596,898
• FY 2024-25: $305,010,341

Public safety and criminal justice

• FY 2023-24: $9,144,646,608
• FY 2024-25: $8,287,462,909

Natural resources

• FY 2023-24: $1,551,566,473
• FY 2024-25: $553,086,150

Business and economic development

• FY 2023-24: $835,433,074
• FY 2024-25: $277,622,996

Regulatory

• FY 2023-24: $163,112,943
• FY 2024-25: $168,738,456

General provisions

• FY 2023-24: $350,000,000
• FY 2024-25: $0

The Legislature

• FY 2023-24: $222,102,300
• FY 2024-25: $248,593,270