According to a recent report, Texas taxpayers are spending over fifty thousand dollars per student every year on public education. That includes various debts and bonds that Texas Independent School Districts have accumulated.
Brandon Waltens with the Texas Scorecard says with numbers like that, it's no wonder people are pushing for major education reforms. He said, "I think it's just one of the reasons that people are really looking at school choice as one of the things that the legislature needs to get done this next session."
Waltens says we also need to take a close look at how we actually spend that money. He said, "You have bloated administrations. There's a lot of money going into school districts, but not a lot of it is actually reaching the classroom and the children."
He says the legislature absolutely can step in and make reforms; they just need to have the courage to do it. He said, "School districts, local governments, they are agents of the state, and the Texas Legislature has authority and should be using that authority to make sure that tax dollars are being used wisely, no matter what district it is."