The Washington County Board of Education voted to approve a resolution opposing Governor Bill Lee’s proposed Education Freedom Scholarship Act, a voucher-style program under consideration at the state level.

Board members said the resolution expressed concern that the program could divert state funds from public schools and argued the bill contained multiple provisions beyond vouchers, including proposals to change superintendent selection and use nontraditional funding sources. Several members said the plan resembled omnibus federal-style bills that combine disparate provisions and that the long-term fiscal effects were uncertain.

During discussion, members raised specific issues: whether student supports the governor cited would be guaranteed in the proposed program, whether one-time bonuses or funding streams would be ongoing, and how future administrations might alter funding. One board member said publicly funded vouchers risk creating a “two-class system” in which families who can access vouchers move to private schools while others remain in underfunded public schools.

Board members asked the superintendent and staff to share the resolution with local legislators. The board recorded the motion as carried; transcript entries show the board voted to adopt the resolution and staff said the resolution would be sent to local representatives.