Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Education topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee reviews statewide Student Education Services account pilot with 50% state match
Summary
The House Education Committee heard testimony on House Bill 1590, which would create a two‑year statewide pilot in which parents open Student Education Services accounts and receive a state match of 50 percent up to $1,000 per student, with an annual state cap of $20 million.
The House Education Committee heard testimony on House Bill 1590, which would create a two‑year statewide pilot called the Student Education Services account. Under the bill as presented, families could open an account at the Bank of North Dakota, deposit funds for K‑12 educational uses, and receive a state match of 50 percent up to $1,000 per student, with a $20 million annual cap ($40 million total for the biennium). The sponsor described the program as opt‑in and available to public, private and homeschool students in grades 1 through 12.
The bill sponsor told the committee the program is intended to be broadly accessible: parents could deposit as little as $25 (the Bank of North Dakota account minimum cited in testimony), receive the matched share and spend the combined balance on authorized educational expenses. The sponsor said unused account balances could roll forward across school years, and that any remaining student contributions — not the state's share — could roll into a state college savings plan if the pupil remained in North Dakota after high school.
Authorized uses discussed in committee testimony included tuition for dual‑credit and CTE/vo‑tech courses, tutoring from qualified providers, mental‑health services, standardized test fees and educational materials. The bill allows deposits monthly or weekly and proposes up to $1.2 million for Bank of North Dakota administrative costs to run the pilot and a procurement for a program manager.
Proponents described the pilot as flexible, targeted and able to reach diverse family needs. Shane Gettle of the State Association of Nonpublic Schools urged lawmakers to consider choice as part of the state'—s constitutional charge to "take any necessary steps to improve literacy, standardized education, and support scientific, industrial, and agricultural progress." Several parents and private‑school leaders said the accounts could help families afford tuition, tutoring and other supports that allowed children to succeed.
Opponents and some observers praised parts of the bill but warned the match design still favors families who can afford to contribute. Homeschool leaders supported aspects of the plan but asked for explicit protections for homeschool and religious liberty from any future regulatory conditions tied to state funds. School administrators and associations supported many program elements (tutoring, CTE, mental‑health services) but urged removal or sharp limitation of state reimbursement for private‑school tuition; they said a full tuition reimbursement risked diverting money from public schools and widening inequities if economically disadvantaged families could not make the required parental contribution.
Committee members asked how the pilot would be targeted to low‑income families, how the program would interact with other proposals (for example free school meals), how Bank of North Dakota would administer high‑volume small deposits and what reporting and accountability the pilot would require. Sponsors said many details were intentionally flexible for the pilot phase and that the two‑year trial would inform statutory adjustments.
The committee concluded the hearing with no immediate vote. Members requested additional drafting language to clarify eligibility, reporting and the relationship of the pilot to other pending education proposals.
