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A resolution opposing expansion of the Education Savings Account program in Tennessee.
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WHEREAS, in 2019, the Tennessee General Assembly approved, by a single vote, the implementation of an Education Savings Account ("ESA"), or "school voucher" program, in Davidson and Shelby counties; and
WHEREAS, the school voucher program was also expanded to Hamilton County in 2023; and
WHEREAS, currently, the school voucher program provides approximately $9,000 for students to attend schools on the list of ESA-approved schools, which can be used toward tuition, textbooks, uniforms, and other approved educational expenses; and
WHEREAS, the proposed expansion of the school voucher program in Tennessee, which allows for $7,075 in public funding for up to 20,000 students to attend private or home schools, will also tie up additional state funds, with $144 million allocated to the school voucher program in this year's state budget; and
WHEREAS, Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools receives nearly a quarter of its budget from federal and state funding, and much of the remaining funding comes from the Metropolitan Government through property taxes; and
WHEREAS, when combined with recently updated state funding calculations based on student enrollment, an expanded school voucher program could mean less funding from the state and more funding required from local sources, which may necessitate an increase in property taxes; and
WHEREAS, Tennessee currently ranks 45th among all states in education funding per student in the United States; and
WHEREAS, Tennessee should be increasing its commitment to public education, not decreasing it; and
WHEREAS, school voucher programs divert taxpayer money from public schools and use it for the private school educations of only certain students; and
WHEREAS, school voucher programs have not improved educational outcomes anywhere they have been adopted; and
WHEREAS, in addition, it is unclear whether there will be sufficient oversight o...
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