Image Credit: Speaker Cameron Sexton / Facebook
The Tennessee Conservative [By Jason Vaughn] –
Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville-District 25) made it clear on Tuesday that he was not all that interested in Senator Todd Gardenhire’s (R-Chattanooga-District 10) new bill that would allow Hamilton County to participate in the state’s school voucher program.
After Sexton was reelected as House Speaker, reporters asked him about the legislation.
“I know Senator Gardenhire,” said Sexton. “I’m not a proponent of ESAs.”
The program was passed in 2019, before Sexton became speaker. Currently, the voucher law is only in effect for Shelby County and Metro Nashville schools. Families who fall in a lower income bracket can apply for funding to send their children to a private school instead of the local public school. To date, the state has approved over 500 applications of the more than 1,000 received for the two participating counties.
Gardenhire originally pulled Hamilton County from the list of potential school systems that would benefit from the law in 2019 because he felt that the application process that was used was unconstitutional.
After the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that the law was constitutional last year, Gardenhire was ready to move once again. Senate Bill 00012 will expand the eligibility criteria for students who live in school districts that have at least 5 schools that fall in the bottom 10% of the state’s schools, not 10 schools as it is currently written. This could potentially pull in Madison and Knox Counties as well.
House Finance Committee Chairwoman Patsy Hazlewood (R-Signal Mountain-District27) will be co-sponsoring the bill.
Hazlewood previously wanted Hamilton County removed from the original law because she felt the system needed a chance to put their newly developed improvement plan into action before making additional changes. However, after that plan did not show the desired improvement, she felt it was time to provide other options for students.
“Now that the TISA formula is in place ensuring that the money follows the child, it only seems fair that Hamilton County students who are zoned for these failing schools should have a chance at a higher quality education as do those in Shelby and Davidson,” Hazlewood said.
“If they run it – get it through committee and get it on the House floor, have a vote on it and see what happens,” said Sexton. “I’m in favor of charter schools. I think charter schools are the right option to go.”
The Chattanooga Times Free Press asked Gardenhire if he felt that Sexton’s hesitation would create any obstacle for his bill.
“I don’t think so. He hasn’t said no,” Gardenhire replied.
A spokesperson for Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally says that McNally “has consistently supported school choice throughout the years and appreciates Senator Gardenhire’s efforts in moving the conversation forward.”
About the Author: Jason Vaughn, Media Coordinator for The Tennessee Conservative ~ Jason previously worked for a legacy publishing company based in Crossville, TN in a variety of roles through his career. Most recently, he served as Deputy Director for their flagship publication. Prior, he was a freelance journalist writing articles that appeared in the Herald Citizen, the Crossville Chronicle and The Oracle among others. He graduated from Tennessee Technological University with a Bachelor’s in English-Journalism, with minors in Broadcast Journalism and History. Contact Jason at news@TennesseeConservativeNews.com
