The Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) Waitlist: Current Status, Movement, and What Comes Next
- Jul 29
- 4 min read
Texas launched its first Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) program this year to overwhelming demand, and the result is what Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock has called the longest school choice waitlist in the country. Here is a look at where the waitlist stands as of late June 2026, what families can expect heading into next year, and the legislative timeline that will determine the program's future funding.
The Waitlist by the Numbers
As of late June 2026, nearly 145,000 eligible students remain on the TEFA waitlist, even though more than 102,000 students have already been awarded accounts. The program's $1 billion appropriation for the 2026-27 school year was exhausted within the second priority tier, which is a big part of why the waitlist is so large.
Students were placed on the waitlist according to TEFA's prioritization framework, following a random lottery held the week of April 27, 2026. The initial waitlist broke down as follows:
Tier 2 (household income at or below 200% of the federal poverty level): 20,383 students
Tier 3 (household income between 200% and 500% of the federal poverty level): 65,368 students
Tier 4 (all other eligible students): 66,951 students
By mid-June, the Tier 2 waitlist had shrunk to nearly 13,000 students as the program issued additional awards.
How Students Move Off the Waitlist
The Comptroller's office periodically reviews available funding and moves students off the waitlist in sequential order, based on priority tier and lottery position. Money frees up for new awards for a few reasons:
Opt-outs. Families who were awarded an account but decide not to participate. Nearly 3,000 families had opted out by June 23, 2026.
Forfeitures. Awarded families who miss a required deadline, such as the July 15 cutoff to select a school or opt in, forfeit their award and that funding moves to the next family in line.
Funding reductions. Awarded students who switch to the "homeschool/other" setting see their funding drop from the standard private school amount (around $10,474) to a flat $2,000. The difference goes toward funding waitlisted students.
Resolved appeals. When eligibility or prioritization appeals are settled, any leftover money held in the program's reserve budget gets released.
These recovered funds have already made a real dent in the waitlist. Between late May and late June 2026, 8,816 students moved off the waitlist entirely: 3,317 Tier 2 students were awarded accounts on May 29th, followed by another 5,499 students, this time moving into Tier 3, on June 23rd.
Families are notified of their approximate waitlist position through the Odyssey portal, with ranges reported from "1 through 1,000" up to "100,001 or higher." When a student is moved off the waitlist, the parent gets an email and text notification and then has four weeks to complete enrollment confirmation. If a student is awarded funding after the school year has already started, that award may be prorated, meaning students who join after September 15 will likely receive a reduced total amount for the year.
The Comptroller's office has said it will keep providing public updates as more students move from the waitlist to active award status.
What We Know About 2027-28 Applications
The application window for the 2026-27 school year closed on March 31, 2026, so that door is shut. Looking ahead, applications for the 2027-28 school year are expected to open in early 2027, sometime in January or February.
In the meantime, families who want to apply for 2027-28 can fill out this interest form to receive updates on the process directly from the program. If a family already applied for 2026-27 and was found eligible, they do not need to fill out this form; the state already has their information.
It is worth noting that families already holding an award and in good standing will not need to reapply each year. What remains unclear is whether families who spend the entire 2026-27 school year on the waitlist will need to submit a brand new application for 2027-28, or whether their existing application will carry forward. There is no explicit answer to that question yet.
One thing the state is using the waitlist for, in the meantime, is advocacy. State law requires the Comptroller's office to report the names and number of students on the waitlist to the Texas Legislature, and that data is likely to be used by legislators and advocates who support the TEFA programs to help make the case for serving more students in future years.
The Legislative Clock: SB2 and the 90th Legislature
TEFA was created under Senate Bill 2, and its funding is tied to the state's 2026-27 biennial budget, which allocated $1 billion to the program. That funding covers the 2026-27 school year and expires at the end of the state's biennium on August 31, 2027. For the program to continue, or grow, the next Texas Legislature will need to renew and appropriate new funding during the upcoming legislative session.
Here are the key dates for the 90th Texas Legislature that families and advocates should have on their radar:
November 9, 2026: Bill filing opens
January 12, 2027: First day of session
March 12, 2027: Deadline to file bills
May 31, 2027: Sine die, the last day of session
Whatever happens with TEFA funding for 2027-28 and beyond will be decided during this window. The size of the current waitlist, and the fact that the program's first-year budget ran out within Tier 2, are likely to be central talking points as lawmakers debate whether and how much to expand funding when the session convenes in January 2027.
For now, families with questions about their own status can check the Odyssey portal for their waitlist position, and those hoping to apply for 2027-28 can watch for the application window to open in early 2027.
Explore our complete collection of articles covering Texas Education Freedom Accounts, including eligibility, applications, special education funding, waitlists, and implementation updates.
