Nation IN BRIEF : TEXAS : School Finance Bill Just Meets Deadline

Gov. Ann Richards signed a school finance reform bill into law, one day before a court deadline for evening out funding between rich and poor school districts. “We’ve had three school finance plans that have been struck down since 1989, and we pray that this fourth try will produce the charm,” said Richards, with an eye toward a court hearing today. Missing the Texas Supreme Court’s deadline would have meant a court-ordered cutoff of state education aid. The bill Richards signed is meant to ensure that no district has more than $280,000 in property wealth per student. Districts that have more per student can choose among several options for giving away wealth, including merging tax bases with poorer districts or moving some taxable property to another district’s tax rolls.