Tennessee House approves change to comptroller’s literacy report schedule

The Tennessee House on March 3 approved Senate Bill 208, a measure that changes the Comptroller's Office of Research and Education Accountability's (OREA) reporting frequency on the Literacy Success Act from annually to once every three years.

Representative Mayberry moved passage of Senate Bill 208 on third and final consideration. He told colleagues the change would "allow OREA to conduct a more thorough analysis of the LSAs and FLSPs" rather than producing a yearly snapshot.

The bill's sponsor said less-frequent reporting would give OREA time to conduct district interviews, identify patterns and trends, and offer deeper findings. Leader Camper asked the sponsor to explain why the frequency was being changed; Mayberry replied that additional time would permit a more detailed interpretation of information received from the Department of Education.

Representative Mayberry said the current annual cadence constrained OREA's ability to analyze information and present more meaningful findings. Representative Haston interjected with a brief quip during debate; Representative Miller asked a procedural question about Mayberry's background during discussion. Mayberry renewed his motion and the House voted.

The clerk recorded the vote as 95 in favor, 0 opposed. The presiding officer declared the bill passed.

The measure amends the reporting schedule; it does not, by itself, change the content of OREA's review or the statutory responsibilities of the Department of Education.

No implementing dates or changes to the underlying statutory language were stated on the floor during debate.