Abbott unveils education proposal to make schools more efficient

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(The Center Square) – Gov. Greg Abbott continues to unveil new education policies on the campaign trail. 

Abbott, who is running for his fourth term as governor, is in a close race with state Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin. 

His education proposals include reducing screen time in classrooms, banning foreign influence in public schools, increasing penalties for educators who abuse children, and requiring administrative audits and oversight over how taxpayer money is spent.  

On Wednesday, he launched two initiatives to increase accountability for public school funding. He proposed that the legislature pass a bill to put measures in place to help school districts eliminate waste, fraud and abuse. He also directed the state comptroller’s office to formally review independent school district finances “to ensure taxpayer dollars reach teachers and students,” The Center Square reported.

“Adding to the robust number of #1 rankings we have in the state of Texas, I'm the first governor to ever articulate that the time has come for Texas to rank number one in educating our children, and I've taken action to put Texas on that pathway,” he said at an event in El Paso. 

He pointed to his work with the state legislature to implement the “largest increase in funding for public education ever in the history of the state.”   

Last year, lawmakers advanced a record $8 billion in funding for public education, a record $4 billion for teacher pay raises to hire and retain teachers at a higher rate, and a record $1.8 billion for the Texas Teacher Incentive Allotment. The allotment provides funding for more than 65,000 teachers in more than 800 school districts. Abbott said thousands of teachers are making $100,000 or more and “that helps us attract and to retain the very best teachers who do the best job of educating our students.

“With funding at an all-time high in public education, we must ensure that those funds are being used where it matters the most, and that is in the classroom,” he said. One way to do this is to eliminate excessive administrative costs, wasteful contracts and fraud, he said. 

Abbott’s plan will “cut unnecessary administrative requirements that take time and resources away from teachers and students” and require school districts to direct 70% of their budget to the classroom, not on administrative expenses, staff or bureaucracy. It also requires the lowest-performing school districts to undergo comprehensive audits by the state comptroller’s office. 

It also involves repealing and reducing rules, reporting requirements and mandates “that impose unnecessary costs, consume staff time, all without improving student outcomes. Those must be eliminated,” he said.

Abbott also cited examples that necessitate new legislation, including the budgets of Austin and El Paso ISDs that show “how financial problems can spiral out of control.” 

From 2015 to 2025, Austin ISD enrollment declined by 14% and administrative spending per student increased by 75%. Over the same time period, El Paso ISD student enrollment declined by roughly 20% and administrative spending per student increased by 100%. 

Funding that school districts receive is based on average daily attendance of students. Those in charge of district budgets “should have been tracking what the decline was in the average daily attendance of students in their district over the past decade to help them better form budgets that would be more accurate,” Abbott said. 

He also pointed to recent internal audits that identified “tens of millions of dollars in financial inefficiencies tied to underestimated expenses, unrealistic budget assumptions and poor financial oversight” in both districts that weren’t a good stewardship of taxpayer resources. Austin ISD is likely to be taken over by the state due to failing grades, The Center Square reported. 

Abbott also pointed to school districts funding water parks, approving excessive severance packages, among other examples, saying, “Too many tax dollars for schools are funding things that do not improve student outcomes.” 

 Also on Wednesday, Abbott directed the state comptroller to investigate the spending of up to four independent school districts of varying size and geographic locations to determine if they are appropriately spending their funds. The districts have yet to be chosen but will be announced. Findings will be presented to the legislature by the end of the year.

“As Texas makes historic investments in public education, it is our collective responsibility to ensure that taxpayer dollars directly reach students, classrooms, and teachers, rather than central-office growth, administrative bloat, consultants, and the web of noninstructional bureaucracy,” he said. “Texans expect that their hard-earned dollars will be spent in compliance with the law. It is essential that the $104.9 billion of taxpayer funds spent on K-12 education is used for its intended purpose: supporting students and teachers to make Texas the top-performing state in education, rather than accelerating administrative bloat.” 

In response, Hinojosa said Abbott expanded bureaucracy at the Texas Education Agency, “robbing classrooms of the money they need.” 

Hinojosa voted for the record public school funding last year championed by Abbott.