HB 1988, the Children’s Promise Act bill that provides a massive increase in tax credits benefiting private schools, has passed the House but has not passed a Senate committee. Please ASK SENATORS TO AMEND THE BILL TO HAVE THESE TAX CREDITS BENEFIT ONLY ORGANIZATIONS THAT SERVE CHILDREN IN FOSTER CARE. The bill could be taken up in committee at any time. HB 1988 would allow an individual private school to receive up to $720,000 annually at taxpayer expense, regardless of the school’s size or enrollment, with no audits, no oversight, and no accountability. Some of the smallest private schools would be eligible for more per student in state tax dollars than public schools receive.
Today was the deadline for committees to pass bills that originated in the opposite chamber. These education bills made it out of committee and are headed for floor votes in the House and Senate…
This bill would harm public school children and teachers:
SB 2332 was amended by the House to replace the Senate language with the INSPIRE Act, which includes no objective formula for determining the base student cost, allowing the Legislature to decide how much funding schools need. See our analysis of how the funding in this proposal compares to the MAEP and the Senate proposal. ASK SENATORS NOT TO CONCUR
Bills that would help public school children and teachers:
HB 765 allows the Mississippi Critical Teacher Shortage Act to remain as law by extending the repeal date and expands the Winter-Reed Teacher Loan Repayment Program. ASK SENATORS TO VOTE YES
HB 1229 requires private voucher schools to meet the statutory requirements of the ESA voucher program in order to receive ESA funds; mandates that students be accepted by a qualifying voucher school before being added to the program’s waiting list; voucher schools must report participating student data on advanced placement and college admission tests as well as the high school graduation rates and college acceptance rates of participating students. ASK SENATORS TO VOTE YES
SB 2682 allows the Mississippi Critical Teacher Shortage Act to remain as law by extending the repeal date and expands the Winter-Reed Teacher Loan Repayment Program. ASK REPRESENTATIVES TO VOTE YES
Find contact information for legislators
Capitol Switchboard: 601.359.3770
Speaker White: 601.359.3300
Lt. Gov. Hosemann: 601.359.3200
Legislators heard you on this bill and removed the harmful components:
HB 1192 was amended to remove the provision allowing for-profit online schools; now requires MDE to review its virtual public school offerings and make recommendations for improvement.
This bill has strong potential:
HB 1823 is the P-12 appropriation bill, which provides a substantial increase in funding for school districts, an increase we support. However, the bill directs the funding to the flawed INSPIRE program, which removes the MAEP from law and provides no objective mechanism for determining school district funding, leaving it to the Legislature to determine the level of funding school districts need. SUPPORT FUNDING PUBLIC SCHOOLS AT THE LEVEL PROVIDED IN HB 1823 USING AN OBJECTIVE FORMULA
These bills have died:
HB 867 allowed students to attend schools in districts where they do not live and do not pay property tax, if the receiving district approved.
HB 1449 created a committee, with a majority of members appointed by voucher supporters, to determine whether Mississippi should adopt a vouchers-for-all scheme.
HB 1453 eliminated the MAEP and replaced it with the INSPIRE Act, which included no objective formula for determining the base student cost, allowing the Legislature to decide how much funding schools need. See our analysis.
SB 2685 allowed retired teachers to work full time in critical shortage areas while receiving PERS benefits.
SB 2686 required private voucher schools to meet the statutory requirements of the ESA voucher program in order to receive ESA funds; mandated that students be accepted by a voucher school before being added to the program’s waiting list.
The Bill Status page of our website provides the latest updates on the status of the bills that we are following. Check it any time to see where these bills stand.
Both chambers will begin voting on bills at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow, so please call your legislators right away about the bills of most concern. Ask other public school supporters you know to call, too. We elect our legislators to represent us, so it is our responsibility to let them know where we stand on the legislation that affects our children’s futures. Together, we’ve got this!
