Editor’s Note: The following is adapted from Boulton’s written testimony against Senate Bill 2, which was heard in committee on January 28.
I am a former private school teacher, a sixth-generation Texan, a graduate of K-12 public education here in Texas, and the mother of three amazing public-school children, and I oppose Senate Bill 2, legislation currently under consideration that would create publicly funded savings accounts for private schools. Though my husband makes a great living, well above the median income in Texas, we cannot afford private schools, which here in Austin would cost us around $90,000 per year. Were we to receive $10,000 per child, as proposed in SB 2, we would only be a third of the way to funding a private school tuition. Considering that 62 percent of public school students in Texas are economically disadvantaged, I am forced to wonder, Who is the real intended beneficiary of this bill?
