“Give us more money,” is the constant refrain of educrats across the land. When the Texas legislature offered more, some districts worked hand-in-hand with teacher unions to oppose the funding boost, because it came with school choice.
That’s right. The very people complaining about funding and school choice are the ones who ultimately rejected billions of dollars in public school funding because it came with school choice. The Legislature offered more than $7 billion to schools last year and the proposal was shot down. Waco ISD alone would have received $16 million or an extra $1,409 per student over two years.
The issue is clear: It’s not funding, it’s school bureaucrats and woke unions that don’t want competition. This, despite the fact teachers’ pay would increase with school choice amid new competition for their invaluable services. That’s right, unions actually lobbied against the interest of their members.
Enough is enough. The school establishment killed additional funding and parental choice in last year’s legislative session.
It comes as no surprise that unions would work against the best interest of their own members. The entire premise of public sector unions is organizing against the best interest of the public. Self-protection at all costs is a defining principle.
Just last year, Waco ISD reported to the Texas Education Agency that it spent almost $5 million on consultants, association dues, lobbying and other “professional services.” In short, the district spent your tax dollars to lobby against the public interest.
Texans are paying the unions to fight school choice.
The answer is as simple as it is obvious. Lawmakers can choose robust school choice options for Texas families, or tolerate the unions working actively to destroy them.