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Benton County commissioners formally oppose Governor Lee’s Education Freedom Act and ESAs
Summary
On Jan. 21 the Benton County Commission unanimously passed a resolution opposing Governor Lee’s Education Freedom Act and Education Savings Accounts (ESAs), citing risks to funding and accountability for the county’s public schools (2,180 students; 68% economically disadvantaged).
The Benton County Commission on Jan. 21 passed a resolution expressing opposition to Governor Bill Lee’s proposed Education Freedom Act and the use of Education Savings Accounts (ESAs), a measure the commission said would divert state funds from public schools and reduce accountability for education spending.
The resolution, sponsored in the meeting materials by Mark Florence (listed in the packet as DOS/DOE), states that Benton County School System serves 2,180 students and that 68% of those students come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. It calls on the Tennessee General Assembly to consider the effect ESAs would have on local school districts and urges state lawmakers to seek alternatives that strengthen public schools.
The resolution asserts that ESAs "threaten the district's ability to maintain the quality of its educational offerings as ESAs would divert state funds to private actors and disrupt local control of education" and argues proposed ESAs would not impose the same accountability requirements on private providers as public schools face. The resolution was presented as a formal expression of the county commission, not as state or district policy.
Commissioner Melton moved the resolution and Commissioner Miller seconded it. On roll-call vote the motion passed 16 Aye, 0 No, with 2 members absent. No substantive amendments were recorded in the meeting minutes. The resolution directs the commission’s position to the Tennessee General Assembly and to local stakeholders.
The commission’s action is advisory: it expresses the legislative body’s position and asks state legislators to consider local impacts. The meeting record does not show testimony from the school system’s executive beyond the written figures in the resolution packet.
