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Committee approves amendment narrowing hold‑harmless protection for schools to education‑scholarship disenrollments
Summary
Lawmakers amended HB 2532 to clarify that the 'floor' of funding preserved for school districts applies when students leave to take an Education Freedom Scholarship (EFS), removed a citizenship provision, and reduced total scholarships from 20,000 to 15,000; the bill as amended moved forward after extended debate.
Chairman Williams led a lengthy discussion of amendments to House Bill 2532 on April 7 that clarify how state funding floors are preserved when students leave public schools. The amendment specifies that preserved funding applies when a student leaves a district to accept an Education Freedom Scholarship (EFS) rather than for all types of disenrollment.
Representative Love pressed the sponsor for clarity on whether the amendment limited earlier hold‑harmless promises that applied to any disenrollment; Williams said the amendment narrows preservation to students who transfer out using the scholarship and characterized the change as a clarification. Leader Lambert and others argued the amendment helps ensure no public school loses money because of the EFS program while accounting for normal population shifts.
Other changes adopted in committee reduced the number of scholarships in the program from 20,000 to 15,000, removed a previously proposed citizenship component, and added transparency and reporting requirements tied to student transfers. Sponsors said the amendment preserved the intent to prevent public schools from losing state funding because of the scholarship program while tailoring protections to scholarship‑driven disenrollments.
The amendment and technical follow‑up amendments passed and the bill moved to Calendar and Rules on a recorded vote.
