"The Texas Senate's passage of SB 2 is the biggest launch of any universal school choice program in American history, with $1 billion in funding for 100,000 students," Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said in a statement Wednesday night.

Moving swiftly on a central Republican priority, the Texas Senate approved a “school choice” bill Wednesday that would put taxpayer dollars toward private school education. The 19-12 vote was largely along partisan lines with state Sen.

The Texas Senate has passed SB 2, which now awaits approval from the House. Here's what lawmakers say about the proposed school voucher program.