Chester County Board affirms intent to accept state $2,000 educator bonuses under Education Freedom Act

The Chester County Board of Education voted to affirm its intention to participate in section 4 of the Education Freedom Act of 2025, a step required for the district to receive state funds to issue a one-time bonus of at least $2,000 to qualifying existing public-school educators.

Unidentified Speaker 4 read the resolution and cited the Education Freedom Act of 2025 and a Tennessee Code Annotated provision (TCA 49-3-104) describing which educators qualify. The resolution notes that the board previously passed a 2024 resolution opposing the use of public funds to support private institutions but that section 4 includes a bonus provision for existing public-school educators. "Whereas this act includes a provision providing a onetime bonus of no less than $2,000 to public school existing educators in the state as defined by TCA 49 dash 3 dash 1 0 4," Unidentified Speaker 4 read.

Unidentified Speaker 3 moved to approve the resolution and the motion carried by voice vote. Unidentified Speaker 4 told the board the state provided a list identifying 196 educators in the district who satisfy the statutory definition; the district will upload the resolution to the state ePlan system before the June 1 deadline. During discussion, Unidentified Speaker 5 commented, "Free money always costs you," expressing skepticism about the measure.

The resolution directs staff to submit the required documentation to the state for the district to participate; the meeting record does not include a roll-call vote or any individual vote tallies in the public portion of the meeting.