Date Filed: August 21, 2015
Original Court: Texas Supreme Court
Case Status: Pending

The Texas Public Policy Foundation filed an amicus brief in support of the Efficiency Intervenors in the school finance trial, for which oral arguments begin today. The brief was filed in the interest of providing the best education for all students, as the Court’s decision will influence the quality of education available in Texas.

“The undisputed evidence at trial demonstrates that Texas public education is far from meeting its constitutionally mandated objectives relating to college and career readiness,” said TPPF’s Center for the American Future Director Robert Henneke. “An alarming percentage of Texas students graduate from high school without the necessary knowledge and skills to perform well in college. The best hope for the future of public education is a declaration from the Texas Supreme Court that the current system is unconstitutionally inefficient, thus forcing the Texas Legislature to take action to act to fix our broken public school system.”

“In 2005, the Texas Supreme Court held that money is not the only issue and not the only solution to the struggles of our education system,” said TPPF’s Center for Education Freedom Policy Analyst Michael Barba. “The justices urged the Legislature to find ways of improving the efficiency of public education that ‘do not involve increased funding.’ The Efficiency Intervenors echo this argument a decade later, and the Court must address it. While our system works well for some Texas students, our state has defaulted on the obligation to provide education for every student. Texas will not prosper in the future if our system does not improve.”