Pearland Republican Jeff Barry has long been skeptical of school vouchers, but on Thursday morning he voted to create what could become the largest voucher program in the nation. Barry, a freshman House lawmaker,

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott met with House Republicans for a pep talk hours before the vote on a school choice bill that would spend $1 billion in taxpayer money to send students to private schools. After the meeting,

The Texas House voted 86-63 early Thursday to give initial approval to a bill creating a $1 billion private school voucher program. Why it matters: The long-contested legislation passed a major hurdle this session,