We are parents and concerned citizens living and sending our children to schools in Spring Branch Independent School District — a Chapter 41 — Recapture District — in Houston, Texas. We are well-informed and aware of what the State is doing (and not doing) with our school tax dollars. The time has come to hold Texas Legislators accountable. When parents take action, notice is taken, and change happens.

The State of Texas is relying on school district tax dollars to help fund the State’s General Budget. This diversion of education dollars has placed an unsustainable burden on many school district budgets. Even with the passing of the transformational House Bill 3 during the 86th legislative session, SBISD’s recapture burden is back on the rise. This school year, SBISD is estimated to send $87M back to the state — right back to 2017-2018 levels. Less-and-less funding is finding its way to public school education. The recapture situation is unsustainable, impacting our school districts and forcing administrators to make drastic decisions, like reducing staff, cutting programs, selling off district property, reducing to 4-day school weeks, and even closing campuses.

SBISD currently makes payments to the State based on taxes we are not even collecting. SBISD also makes payments to the State assuming we are only educating Pre-K students for half a day when we provide full-day Pre-K. And SBISD also bears the burden of 100% of our transportation costs.

The State has a constitutional mandate to provide free public education, however, for far too long the State hasn’t been ponying up its share of the money, and, has resorted to using taxpayers’ education dollars to fund non-educational budget items. It’s time for the State to be a fair partner in the funding of Texas public schools — and to keep education dollars in education.