Subcommittee advances DOE cleanup bill that tightens virtual-school closure language

Chairman White described HB 25 33 as an omnibus cleanup bill with "71 sections" intended to clarify statutory language and increase operational flexibility for LEAs and public charter schools. He said the bill moves language about virtual-school closures from a permissive 'may' to a mandatory 'shall' in key places, aiming to make the law enforceable.

Two non‑rewriting amendments were adopted. Public witnesses told the committee that virtual schools serve students with special circumstances and that relying solely on growth metrics like TVAAS can misrepresent performance because of testing logistics and transient populations. Kristen Tiagui of Parents for School Options testified that virtual schools often serve students with medical, mental-health, or bullying issues and urged careful accountability guardrails. Cheryl Tatum of Stride argued for consistent standards across school types and noted that closure timelines tied to "2 consecutive priority identification cycles" match approaches used for charters.

Department staff (Anna Hall, Robin Kopp, Emily Cornute) answered questions about differences among bills on the calendar, historical closure attempts, and the mechanics of cycles and priority lists; staff said legal and operational constraints — including past litigation and testing irregularities — had slowed closures and that recent statutory fixes and enrollment-cap changes aim to improve accountability. The committee voted to advance HB 25 33 to the full education committee (7 ayes, 0 nos, 1 present not voting).

Next steps: HB 25 33 will be reconciled with overlapping bills and proceed to full committee consideration.