In his final State of the State address, Gov. Bill Lee made clear his support for rapid privatization of schools.
Lee called on the legislature to double the number of school vouchers (essentially, discount coupons for private schools), with a total voucher cost of $303 million.
Chalkbeat reports:
Gov. Bill Lee wants Tennessee lawmakers to invest more than $155 million into the state’s voucher program, which would double the Education Freedom Scholarships pool from 20,000 to 40,000 private school vouchers.
Lee’s proposed budget also would more than double the costs of the program and blow past the expansion cap lawmakers voted on last year, growing the program beyond its original limits despite little data to indicate the program is impacting student achievement.
If Lee achieves his goal, Tennessee would spend more than $303 million in public dollars next fiscal year to help send 40,000 students to private schools across the state.
Lee’s budget move for vouchers follows a trend in other discount coupon states: Rapid expansion that eats more and more of the state budget and also disrupts local school funding.
Indiana, Arizona, and Florida have all seen voucher budgets grow to consumer significant state dollars, leaving crumbs on the table for public schools.
This is Lee’s top legislative achievement – voucherizing Tennessee public schools. It’s been his top priority since 2019, and as he leaves office, his dream (and the state’s nightmare) is on the verge of being realized.
