Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced the first 25 of 40 Texas Senate priority bills, outlining several hot-topic issues he says will bolster Trump's agenda.

Senate Bill 2 starts a new debate on a school voucher program in Texas. A funding proposal would allow up to 100,000 K-12 students who want to enroll to a private school to participate.

Late Tuesday night the Texas Education Committee voted to advance State Bill 2 with a 9-2 Republican majority pushing the bill forward despite facing opposition on both sides of the political aisle.

After hours of testimony Tuesday, the Senate Committee on Education advanced Senate Bill 2, a school voucher bill, setting it up for a floor vote.

The Senate could vote on the proposal as soon as next week. Democrats on Tuesday criticized the bill saying it fails to prioritize the state’s neediest children.

The proposal, a priority of Gov. Greg Abbott, budgets $1 billion over the next two years to fund the private school vouchers.

The school voucher debate officially started today in the Texas Senate. The new proposal would set aside a billion dollars for so-called “education savings accounts,” essentially an incentive to pull kids from public school and put them in private school.

A fiscal note for SB 2 from the Texas Senate said the legislation would allow about 35,000 students to attend private school in 2027.