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The Blast - May 20, 2025 [1]

['The Texas Tribune']

Date: 2025-05 

THE HOUSE’S LEVERAGE FOR SCHOOL FUNDING

With sine die only two weeks away, the House and Senate are locked in key negotiations over the THC bill and public education funding.

Today, the House was supposed to take up Senate Bill 3, the bill to restrict THC in Texas. However, the House postponed SB 3 till the evening, then followed that up by closing shop for the day before the bill was called up.

Behind the scenes, House Speaker Dustin Burrows, Public Education Committee Chair Brad Buckley, R-Salado, committee Vice Chair Diego Bernal, D-San Antonio, and committee member Trent Ashby, R-Lufkin, had traveled across the Rotunda to the Senate side this afternoon, as negotiators try to reach a consensus on the public school funding plan, HB 2. Shortly after Burrows and his entourage returned from the Senate, the House recessed until tomorrow morning. While Burrows and Ashby returned to the floor, Buckley and Bernal walked into the back hall, likely to continue discussions on the funding plan.

At this point in session, SB 3 and HB 2 are some of the biggest chips still in play, and the final opportunities for political maneuvering. With the House and the Senate likely headed to a conference committee to hash out their differences on HB 2, the House wants SB 3 to go to a conference as well, according to Republican and Democratic House members and staff. If the bills move in tandem, the House can use SB 3 as leverage to boost school funding in HB 2.

However, Rep. Tom Oliverson added a wrinkle to that plan yesterday.

The Republican from Cypress says he has the votes for an amendment to SB 3 that would revert the bill from the House’s THC regulation approach to the total ban that passed out of the Senate. If the House passes the Senate bill, there will be no conference on SB 3, giving up the House’s leverage to get school funding increases.

There’s also the elephant in the room: Oliverson and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick are neighbors and share Allen Blakemore as their consultant.

Voting against banning consumable THC could invite backlash in a Republican primary, when the electorate is dominated by the most fervent conservatives. Moreover, shooting down a ban — which Patrick has said would be worth a special session — could spoil members’ hopes at future dealings with the Senate, or even a seat in the upper chamber.

The House has acceded to the Senate’s position on nearly everything this session. The exceptions would be that the chambers met in the middle on the business personal property tax proposals, and the House got its negotiated version of the voucher bill. However, Democrats, who along with Burrows are pushing for increased higher education funding, felt like they got rolled during the voucher talks, particularly after Republicans backed away from an amendment that would have put the voucher bill to a public vote.

So far during school finance negotiations, the Senate has resisted raising the basic allotment to the levels that the House wants. The House wants to raise the basic allotment by $395 while the Senate plan includes an only $55 increase. SB 3 is perhaps Patrick’s biggest remaining priority that the House could use as leverage to compel the Senate to bridge that gulf.

Some senators believe that House members “still have a conscience” when it comes to banning consumable THC products, but the next 24 hours will be an important sign for the outcomes of school funding negotiations.

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[1] Url: https://thetexastribune.beehiiv.com/p/the-blast-may-20-2025-6dc84034f1a4f4d0

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