Texas Legislature’s state budget proposals leave more than $50 billion in state funds up for grabs

An aerial view of the Capitol on March 23, 2020. (Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune)

Texas House and Senate leaders on Wednesday released their respective chambers’ new preliminary state budget bills for the 2024-25 biennium, with each proposing to shell out an unprecedented $130.1 billion in general revenue at a time when the state is awash in more cash than the state constitution will allow lawmakers to spend.

The proposals, which are similar in totals but differ in some of the details, appear to leave on the table more than $50 billion in available funds at a time when the state has a total of $188.2 billion in funds available for spending over the next cycle — including a historic $32.7 billion cash balance.