NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Governor Bill Lee announced a bill Tuesday that would effectively give money to parents to pay for tuition and other expenses in schools like private schools or charter schools. Critics said it would divert public money away from public school systems.
The Education Freedom Scholarship Act would start by providing a total of 20,000 scholarships to Tennessee students during the 2024-2025 school year. The first 10,000 scholarships would be for students whose families were at or below 300% of the federal poverty line, who have a disability or who are eligible for the state's new ESA program.
The other 10,000 scholarships would be available to a universal pool of students eligible to attend public schools.
The following school year and beyond, Tennessee students would be universally eligible to get scholarships so they could attend schools other than public schools, as long as funds are available for scholarships. They could be used for faith-based schools, private schools and charter schools. Tennessee would join nine other states that have similar programs. Those states are listed below.
- Arizona
- Utah
- Oklahoma
- Arkansas
- Florida
- North Carolina
- West Virginia
- Ohio
- Iowa
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, Arizona, Oklahoma, Arkansas, North Carolina, and West Virginia all ranked under the national average for eighth-grade reading performance. The others ranked above the national average.
During a press conference on Tuesday, Lee said the bill was meant to expand choices available to parents searching for schools other than what is publicly available.
"Every Tennessee child, as the Speaker said, deserves a shot at success. Every student has unique needs. And every type of classroom provides a unique option for those needs. I know that first-hand," Lee said. "We need to make sure that every child finds the right education outcome that fits their educational needs. And finally, parents know best what's best for their child, and that's the underlying premise that we operate from today."
He also said the program was not exactly like the state's "education savings account" program — a contentious program that allowed public tax dollars to be given to families to pay for private schooling. Under the law, eligible families are given around $8,100 in public tax dollars to help pay for private school tuition and other preapproved expenses.
Only select counties were allowed to participate in the program — Hamilton County, Shelby County and Davidson County. A judge ruled that the program was ruled constitutional in 2022.
"We will continue to fund public schools, as we have for the last five years," he said. "We can have the best public schools in the country that are appropriately funded."
Information about how much the universal education scholarship program would cost the state was not immediately available. He also said lawmakers are still working on the final details of the bill.
Democratic lawmakers held a press conference before Lee's announcement, condemning the bill.
"Now, the governor is proposing to make it statewide, which is a complete break in the promise that we have well-funded public schools in Tennessee — that every kid, no matter what ZIP code they were born in or where they live, they have access to a strong and effective public education, and one that has standards that make sure it's performance," said Senator Raumesh Akbari (D-Memphis).
During the conference, lawmakers expressed concern that private schools would get public funds despite not having to follow the same standards as public schools. Akbari also said the system could expand and overtake public schools, attracting charter and private schools to Tennessee to take advantage of the program.
"We've seen situations of rife fraud, where parents and families are potentially abusing these dollars," she said.
Representative John Ray Clemmons (D - Nashville) also spoke at the conference. He said Tennessee ranks 46th in the nation for spending per student, spending around 30% less on students than the national average.
"This voucher scam is only the latest in Governor Bill Lee's and the GOP supermajority's strategic undermining of the public education system," he said. "Lee and the Republicans have systematically removed decision-making from the classroom at the local level with a series of laws."