Thank you for your calls to the House on the Children’s Promise Act bills (HB 1902 and HB 1903), which would increase dramatically the tax dollars being diverted to fund private schools. Unfortunately, both passed the House and are headed to the Senate.
See the House votes: HB 1902 HB 1903
All “school choice” and private school funding bills that passed the House have been transmitted to the Senate. We need your help to defeat them there.
Children’s Promise Act bills (HB 1894, HB 1902, HB 1903) will be handled in the Senate Finance Committee.
Private and public school choice, “Tim Tebow”, charter school expansion, and school district consolidation bills are assigned to the Senate Education Committee.
Please alert other public school supporters and ask that they join you in urging senators and Lt. Gov. Hosemann to end this school choice scam.
Here’s the message:
OPPOSE
Any expansion of school choice (private, public, or charter school)
Any increase in Children’s Promise Act tax credits
Any measure that allows homeschoolers to participate in public school activities
AND
Require state audits of any private school receiving taxpayer-subsidized dollars through the Children’s Promise Act, ESA vouchers, or other means.
Capitol Switchboard: 601.359.3770
(Open Mon. noon-5:00, Tues.-Thurs. 8:00-5:00, Fri. 8:00-noon)
Lt. Gov. Hosemann: 601.359.3200
Find contact information for all legislators who represent your school district
These are the bills we oppose:
- HB 1078 – Removes accountability that was added to ESA vouchers in 2024 and expands the program to add children in foster care who do not have special needs, a move certain to lead to additional expansions.
- HB 1431 – Creates a task force to develop recommendations for consolidating districts into one per county; of 20 task force members, includes only one designated as a public school representative.
- HB 1432 – Allows charter schools in C districts, punishing districts that have worked hard to improve beyond D and F ratings. Allows multiple bodies to authorize new charters, letting charter applicants “shop” for a lenient authorizer with lax oversight. This reduces accountability and is likely to result in many more failing charter schools.
- HB 1435 – Provides public school choice with state funding to follow the child, allowing students to attend school in districts where they do not live and their households do not pay local taxes; creates a significant administrative burden on school districts. Provides no transportation for students, so very few could participate, leaving hundreds of children in struggling schools with even fewer resources.
- HB 1617 – “Tim Tebow” bill – Allows homeschool students to participate in public school activities and athletics, incentivizes drop-outs, creates an unlevel playing field that favors homeschool over public school students, and inflicts an enormous administrative burden on public school administrators. For public school students to be eligible to participate in school activities, they must maintain a 2.0 GPA on rigorous state standards throughout the school year, but homeschoolers would be required only to show evidence that they were qualified for promotion to the current grade. While the bill requires participating homeschool students to take state tests, it does not require them to pass the tests.
- HB 1902 – Increases Children’s Promise Act tax credit subsidies for private schools to $20-million in 2025 (an increase of $11-million), with up to $600,000 going annually to each private school; no requirement that private schools enroll new students, no restrictions on expenditure of funds, no reporting requirements, no state audits to verify the number of qualifying children.
- HB 1903 – Increases Children’s Promise Act tax credit subsidies for private schools to $16-million in 2025, $18-million in 2026, and $20-million in 2027 (significant increases), with annual per-school caps of $480,000 in 2025, $540,000 in 2026, and up to $600,000 in 2027; no requirement that private schools enroll new students, no restrictions on expenditure of funds, no reporting requirements, no state audits to verify the number of qualifying children.
Your voice is important. Legislators really do want to represent their constituents well, and your calls give them the support and evidence they need to push back against others who are pressuring them to support these dangerous school choice measures. Public schools are the lifeblood of our local communities, and they are more than worth the few minutes it takes to reach out to our legislators about these efforts to undermine public education. Spread the word. Together, we’ve got this!
