School finance back in court in Texas

Attorneys for hundreds of school districts in Texas have returned to court to renew their push to overturn the state's school finance system. The Dallas Morning News says the lawyers contend that the legislature failed last year to fix problems that have plagued the system. Attorneys for the state maintain that school districts benefited from a large funding increase and elimination of several required high school tests. The hearings before District Judge John Dietz come nearly one year after he issued an initial ruling in the case that ordered dramatic changes in school funding. Dietz withheld his final ruling, pending the Legislature’s 2013 session. Lawmakers increased school funding by $3.4 billion, but that was preceded by a $5.4 billion cut in 2011.