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House committee advances bill to refocus high-school assessments toward ACT/SAT and alternatives
Summary
Sponsor says HB 675 would shift high-school end-of-course testing toward ACT/SAT (and technical equivalents) and provide alternatives for students without access to certain courses; committee advanced the bill to Government Operations, 15-3.
House Bill 675, a proposal to reform high-school end-of-course (EOC) testing and refocus high-school accountability around college-entrance assessments, moved out of the Tennessee House Education Committee to Government Operations after a morning hearing.
Representative David Cochran, sponsor of HB 675, told the committee the bill aims to "refocus the exams and the accountability portion in our high schools to ACT, which is the national standard," and that the legislation would allow the ACT or SAT (and technical equivalents such as ACT WorkKeys) to serve as the basis for accountability in grades 9–12. Cochran said the measure also provides alternatives for technical students in districts where some courses (for example, Algebra II) are not available.
Why it matters: Changing which tests are tied to accountability would shift how school performance is measured and could affect classroom instruction, college-admission alignment and district testing costs. Sponsor remarks framed the bill as an effort to reduce over-testing and to focus on assessments connected to postsecondary opportunities.
What happened in committee: The committee adopted a subcommittee amendment (6055) and later voted to move the bill out. The clerk recorded 15 ayes and 3 nays; the bill was referred to Government Operations for further consideration.
Key quotes from the hearing: "This isn't a bill against data," Representative Scott Haston told the committee in supporting remarks; "It's about being focused on the right kind of data." (Haston, committee member) "[The bill] refocuses the exams and the accountability portion in our high schools to ACT, which is the national standard," Representative David Cochran (sponsor) said in committee.
Next steps: HB 675 will be considered by Government Operations. Any amendment adopted in subsequent committees or on the floor will alter the bill’s text and implementation path.
Provenance (transcript evidence): introduction and sponsor explanation (transcript block starting s=1141.97); clerk vote tally (s=1458.01).
