Historic public school funding bill clears Texas House, awaits Gov. Abbott's signature
Just before 4 p.m., lawmakers in the lower chamber overwhelmingly approved House Bill 2, which allocates $8.5 billion in new funding for public education. Roughly half of that amount will go toward permanent pay raises for most teachers and non-administrative staff.
Texas Capitol at sunset on a cloudy day
Getty Images/iStockphoto
The Senate unanimously approved the measure 31-0 on Friday night.
The legislation also includes a significant overhaul of the state's special education programs, aiming to improve services and support for students with disabilities.
Republicans say the $8.5 billion increase in public school funding represents the largest single increase in state history.
About half of this new money, $4.2 billion, is for teacher pay raises, the largest in state history. Other non-administrative staff will also receive a raise.
Teachers with three plus years of experience would receive a raise, and that increase would double in year five. Teachers in rural school districts and five plus years of experience would receive up to $8,000 more. Free pre-K is available for teachers as well.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Factbox-Trump tariffs threaten India's export edge; key sectors brace for impact
By Vivek Kumar M and Bharath Rajeswaran (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday slapped 25% tariffs on Indian goods, along with an unspecified penalty tied to energy and defence purchases from Russia — a move that, if enforced, could erode India's export competitiveness and weigh on investor sentiment. India's trade surplus with the U.S. — its largest export market — stood at 1.2% of GDP in 2024. Analysts warn halving that surplus could shave 25–40 basis points off GDP, undermining India's 'safe haven' narrative amid a global slowdown. The relative appeal of Indian markets has also faded, with local equities underperforming peers like Vietnam and Indonesia, which have secured trade pacts with Washington. CLSA said the tariff threat adds to uncertainty in an already expensive market. With negotiations set to resume in mid-August, markets expect the final tariff rate to be lower than 25%. But until clarity emerges, export-linked sectors face significant near-term headwinds. See below for a sector snapshot on who is exposed: PHARMACEUTICALS The U.S. accounts for nearly one-third of India's pharma exports (about $9 billion in FY24). Jefferies estimates a 2–8% EPS hit for Biocon, Sun Pharma and Dr. Reddy's, if generics are included. HSBC warns of an up to 17% downside to FY26 earnings forecasts. TEXTILES Exporters like Welspun Living, Gokaldas Exports, Indo Count and Trident derive 40–70% of sales from the U.S. Higher tariffs could shift market share to Vietnam, which benefits from lower U.S. duties. OIL REFINING A proposed penalty on Russian oil imports could hit Reliance Industries and state-run refiners Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum. Companies may face higher costs if forced to diversify crude sourcing. AUTO COMPONENTS Automakers have limited U.S. exposure, but parts makers including Bharat Forge and Sona BLW are Motors' Jaguar Land Rover unit is shielded under U.S.-UK/EU trade arrangements. CAPITAL GOODS & CHEMICALS Cummins India, Thermax and KEI Industries have 5–15% U.S. exposure. Chemical exporters such as Navin Fluorine, PI Industries and SRF may face margin pressure, especially on refrigerant gas exports. SOLAR EQUIPMENT Waaree Energies and Premier Energies count the U.S. as a key market. Nearly 20% of Waaree's FY24 revenue came from the U.S., which also accounts for a major chunk of its 59% overseas current order book. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Editorial: Hands off — Trump's off-base attack on NYC's sanctuary immigration policy
Intentionally misstating New York City's sanctuary immigration policy as thwarting the prosecution of violent criminals, the Trump administration continued its war on local government by filing suit in federal court last week, one of a number of similar lawsuits across the country that conflate civil noncooperation with active criminal interference and attempt to conscript local officials into President Donald Trump's destructive crackdown. This should prove to Mayor Mayor Adams and other state and city leaders that no amount of appeasement is going to forestall the targeting from Trump. Adams met multiple times with immigration coordinator Tom Homan, insisting that the two men had 'the same goal,' making concessions like signing off on the opening up of an ICE office on Rikers Island years after a city sanctuary law had kicked them out. It's clear that Trump and Homan were not and probably could not be placated to the extent that they would leave Adams and New York City alone. The reality is that this is a totalizing project; Stephen Miller and the rest of the White House want to rid the country almost entirely of immigrants, with or without legal status, and regardless of where they are or what effect that will have on our economy and society. They've been routinely violating the law to do so. It's worth noting once more that Trump's is a political movement that often proclaimed itself a defender of state rights and local control, but apparently that only extended to allowing local officials to detain immigrants, pull books from school shelves, limit access to abortion, curb labor and environmental protections and drive LGBTQ people from public life. When it comes to a refusal to participate in federal operations that have so far involved masked and unidentified agents shoving people into unmarked vehicles — just the sort of thing that we would call authoritarianism and tyranny anywhere else — then states and localities get no say beyond being extensions of a central government. We're not particularly worried that any competent judge would accept these nonsensical claims. A day after the New York case was filed, a federal judge in Chicago dismissed the Trump lawsuit against that city's sanctuary immigration policy. We just want to remind readers that sanctuary is not immunity from prosecution, especially prosecution for violent crimes. What it is however is that when someone is treated at a city health clinic for TB or enrolls a child in school or reports a crime to the police as a victim or a witness, the person's civil immigration status is irrelevant. We want everyone in the city to get treated when sick, we want all children to be in school, we want all crime victims and witnesses to come forward to the cops. The idea of anti-commandeering — the notion that the federal government can't force state and local governments to carry out its own agenda and enforcement functions — has been foundational from the genesis of our country's federalized system. The right of jurisdictions to enact sanctuary provisions that block the use of local resources for this federal function has been litigated over and over again, and always found to be on solid legal footing. We are, however, more worried about the U.S. Supreme Court, which has in the past several months taken it upon itself to sign off on Trump's expansive power grabs. It has allowed among other things Trump to fire federal employees and independent agency members in direct contravention of statute, allowed the limiting of a nationwide order blocking Trump's attempt to overturn the 14th Amendment's birthright citizenship provisions and allowed parents to impose religious beliefs on whole school curricula. If these questions get up to that high court level, we hope that the justices will exercise some of their independent power, as they did on other absolutely egregious instances like Trump's efforts to remove people without due process under the Alien Enemies Act proclamation. Anything else will destroy the trust of people in their own local officials and governments and strike at the very foundation of this country's system of government. _____
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Stock market today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq futures rise ahead of key inflation data, with Apple and Amazon to report
US stock futures surged on Thursday as investors weighed a new trade deal with South Korea and strong earnings from Meta (META) and Microsoft (MSFT). S&P 500 futures (ES=F) rose 1.1%, while those on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) moved up 0.4%. Contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) jumped 1.5% after quarterly reports from Meta and Microsoft wowed Wall Street late Wednesday, sending the stocks of both tech giants soaring. Meta impressed investors with an earnings beat as well as stronger-than-expected guidance even as the company ramps up its AI spending spree. Microsoft also posted impressive results, showcasing the company's strength in cloud computing and AI. Later on Thursday, Apple (AAPL) and Amazon (AMZN) will report their earnings results. On the macro front, investors will get another clue as to the possible direction of interest rates with the release of the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index. Stocks were mixed in during the day Wednesday after the Fed held interest rates steady for its fifth-straight meeting, with two Fed governors dissenting. Following the decision, Fed Chair Jerome Powell stressed "no decisions" had been made about a September rate cut, undercutting Trump's claim he had heard a September rate cut was coming. Easing trade war fears also buoyed markets after the US struck a flurry of trade deals on the eve of President Trump's tariff deadline. On Wednesday, Trump announced the US had made a pact with South Korea that imposes a 15% tariff rate on its imports. US exports to the country will not be charged a tariff, according to Trump's post on Truth Social. "South Korea will be completely OPEN TO TRADE with the United States," the president wrote. Trump said that South Korea also agreed to $350 billion in US investments as well as purchases of liquified natural gas and other energy products. Samsung Electronics chip business fell drastically in Q2 Samsung Electronics ( saw a mammoth drop in profit from the chip-making arm of the electronics giant. Bloomberg reports: Read more here. Samsung Electronics chip business fell drastically in Q2 Samsung Electronics ( saw a mammoth drop in profit from the chip-making arm of the electronics giant. Bloomberg reports: Read more here. Samsung Electronics ( saw a mammoth drop in profit from the chip-making arm of the electronics giant. Bloomberg reports: Read more here.
