Texas has funded school vouchers for 85,344 students in the inaugural year of its newly established education savings account program, according to a snapshot document released by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. The program received nearly 274,000 applications, leaving more than 121,000 eligible students on a waitlist.
Program Launch and Enrollment Figures
The state officially funded the Texas Education Freedom Accounts for 85,344 students as the state school voucher program entered its first year, making it the third-largest education savings account program in the nation, according to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts report released on Aug. 1. The office received around 274,000 applications, determining that more than 248,000 students were eligible. Despite the high number of approvals, more than 121,000 students remain on the waiting list, marking what is reported as the largest school choice waiting list in the country.
The $1 billion TEFA program was created by Senate Bill 2, authored by then-state Sen. Brandon Creighton during the 89th Texas Legislature in 2025. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed the legislation into law on May 3, 2025, allowing funds to begin flowing to families for the 2026-27 school year.
Demographics and Income Breakdown of Participants
State data reveals that approximately 80% of participating students come from families with household incomes below 200% of the federal poverty level. Specifically, families at or below 200% of the federal poverty level account for 68,000 of the funded participants out of 94,663 eligible applicants in that income tier, according to the comptroller’s snapshot document.
The demographic breakdown of funded participants across various racial and ethnic groups includes:
- White: 34,792 funded out of 112,587 eligible applicants
- Hispanic: 24,043 funded out of 57,991 eligible applicants
- Black: 11,570 funded out of 27,969 eligible applicants
- Multiracial: 10,051 funded out of 28,442 eligible applicants
- Asian/Pacific Islander: 4,305 funded out of 20,084 eligible applicants
- American Indian/Alaskan Native: 583 funded out of 1,639 eligible applicants
Additionally, the report indicates that almost 25% of participating students have a qualifying disability. When broken down by gender, the program funded 43,751 male students and 41,593 female students. By grade level, pre-K through 5th grade saw the highest participation with 51,613 funded students, followed by 6th through 8th grade with 23,317, and 9th through 12th grade with 10,420.
Top Participating Public School Districts
Public school districts across the state are seeing varying numbers of students enter the program. According to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts snapshot, the top 10 public school districts with the most students participating in the voucher program are:
- Houston ISD: 3,327 students
- Dallas ISD: 2,645 students
- Northside ISD (San Antonio): 2,271 students
- Fort Bend ISD: 2,024 students
- Fort Worth ISD: 1,764 students
- Cypress-Fairbanks ISD: 1,596 students
- North East ISD: 1,536 students
- Conroe ISD: 1,297 students
- Katy ISD: 1,156 students
- Plano ISD: 1,140 students
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