New bill: Lawmakers could take away School Land Board’s ability to invest the Permanent School Fund

By Jeremy Blackman, Staff writer March 7, 2019 2:19 p.m.

Texas’ School Land Board controls how $10 billion of the state’s $44 billion Permanent School Fund is invested. From right to left are board member Gilbert Burciaga, chairman George P. Bush, board member Scott Rohrman, and staffers Mark Havens, deputy land commissioner and Jeff Gordon, general counsel.

Photo: Mark Mulligan, Staff photographer

Texas’ School Land Board controls how $10 billion of the state’s $44 billion Permanent School Fund is invested. From right to left are board member Gilbert Burciaga, chairman George P. Bush, board member Scott Rohrman, and staffers Mark Havens, deputy land commissioner and Jeff Gordon, general counsel.

Photo: Mark Mulligan, Staff photographer

A new Houston Chronicle investigation, "Broken Trust," reveals that the Texas Permanent School Fund – at $44 billion, the country's largest education endowment – should be billions larger than it is. Politically connected investment managers are collecting soaring fees while returns lag behind other comparable funds. Read the investigation on our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com.

Austin Lawmakers filed bills this week that would strip the School Land Board of its ability to invest billions of dollars on behalf of Texas schoolchildren.