The Texas comptroller’s office on Thursday clarified its interpretation of the state’s new education savings account program, signaling a potential pathway for families of students with disabilities to qualify for significantly more funding in future years.
The clarification comes as families race to complete applications for the program before the current deadline. The initiative, created through Senate Bill 2, provides public funds that families can use for private school tuition, educational services, or other approved learning expenses outside the traditional public school system.
Under the program, families may receive about $10,500 per year if their children attend private school. Students who are homeschooled are eligible for roughly $2,000 annually. However, students with disabilities can qualify for far larger awards — up to $30,000 per year — intended to help cover specialized educational services.
Eligibility for the higher funding level depends on whether a student has completed a formal special education evaluation through a public school district. That requirement has raised concerns among families who began applying for the program without realizing the evaluation was necessary to receive the additional support.
Earlier Thursday, the comptroller’s office indicated that students who failed to complete the required evaluation before the application deadline could be permanently limited to the lower funding level under the language of current law. That interpretation suggested families might not be able to qualify for the higher amount in later years even if their child later completed the evaluation.
Later in the day, however, the comptroller’s office suggested there may be a workaround.
Officials said the key lies in how the law defines a “child with a disability.” Under the statute, that designation applies to students who are eligible for a public school’s special education program, which includes undergoing an official evaluation. Based on that interpretation, families who miss the evaluation deadline this year could potentially complete the process before next year’s application period and qualify for the higher funding tier at that time.
Whether that scenario becomes reality could depend heavily on funding decisions by the Texas Legislature. If lawmakers do not increase the program’s budget in future sessions, state officials may have limited flexibility to provide larger awards to students who later become eligible for higher funding.
The issue has also highlighted inconsistencies in how the state defines disability status within the program.
During the application process, students with disabilities receive priority access to the education savings accounts when demand exceeds available funding. But under rules adopted by the comptroller’s office, families do not need a public school evaluation to claim that priority status. Instead, they may submit medical documentation to show their child has a disability.
That broader definition for application priority contrasts with the narrower definition used to determine funding levels, which requires a public school evaluation.
Officials say lawmakers may need to address the discrepancy in future legislative sessions. Additional clarifications could also be required to determine how funding should change if students move between educational settings, such as a homeschooled student later enrolling in a private school.
The rollout of the new program has already created logistical challenges for families and school districts alike.
Some parents say they only learned about the evaluation requirement after beginning the application process during a 41-day window that opened Feb. 4. As word spread, public school districts across Texas have experienced a surge in requests from parents seeking evaluations needed to qualify for the higher funding tier.
Under state rules, districts have 15 school days after receiving a request to offer parents an opportunity to provide written consent for an evaluation. Once consent is given, districts have 45 school days to complete the assessment. After that, parents and educators typically have up to 30 calendar days to meet and develop an educational plan tailored to the student’s needs.
Those timelines mean many families who recently requested evaluations may not receive them before the application deadline.
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