🟡Relating to adult high school charter program funding.

🟡 SB 1490: Increases state payments for adult charter programs

What it says it does:
SB 1490 updates how Texas funds adult high school charter programs when students enroll for part of the school year. It raises the attendance fraction those programs can claim for short term enrollees, so the state pays closer to a full year’s funding.

What it actually changes:
Current law gives only one tenth or one quarter funding for short term students. The bill lifts those to one quarter or one half, depending on the percentage of instructional days completed. It raises average daily attendance and therefore funding through the Foundation School Program starting September 1, 2025.

Who is pushing for it:
Supporters in the official files include Goodwill Central Texas Excel Center, New Heights, ResponsiveEd, United Ways of Texas, the Texas Association of School Boards, the Texas Association of School Administrators, and a school law firm representative.

Who benefits:
Adult charter operators gain predictable funding for rolling admissions and late entry students. Adult learners may find it easier to enroll midyear because programs will no longer take such a financial hit for accepting them.

Who gets left out or exposed:
Traditional ISDs and community based adult programs receive no new help. Taxpayers carry higher state costs without matching performance reporting. Individuals listed against the bill cited concern over rising costs and limited oversight.

Why this matters long term:
The bill permanently increases state costs for a narrow set of charters without requiring results tracking or audits. Over time, as adult charters expand, these changes could shift education funds toward fewer, larger operators.

What to watch next:
Watch whether TEA or the Legislature adds public outcome reporting or performance safeguards in future sessions. Also monitor if a few networks scale rapidly and concentrate the new funding.

Bottom line:
SB 1490 fixes an underfunding issue for adult charters but does not tie the new money to completions or outcomes, leaving open questions about long term cost and equity.

Questions to ask lawmakers:

1. How will Texans be able to see, in plain public numbers, whether this extra funding leads to more diplomas, not just more enrollment?
2. Would you support adding a regular public review or audit so we can confirm the money is producing real outcomes and not just expanding costs?
3. If this program grows fast, what stops a few large networks from capturing most of the new funding without strong completion results?


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