State and Legislative Updates from SEF’s Government Affairs Team

The weeks of 3/3 – 3/13

Good morning,

As state legislatures move deeper into the spring session, education policy decisions with significant long‑term fiscal and governance implications are taking shape across the South. Over the past two weeks, multiple states have advanced sweeping proposals to expand or restructure school voucher programs; developments that could shift hundreds of millions of public dollars away from traditional public school systems. In particular, Alabama, Arkansas, South Carolina, and Tennessee are each considering or moving forward with voucher‑related expansions, prompting bipartisan questions about budget sustainability, accountability, and the impact on local school districts.

At the same time, policymakers are weighing critical investments to strengthen public education. Georgia is allocating substantial funding for statewide literacy coaches and has enacted the state’s first need‑based college aid program, a landmark move designed to bolster postsecondary access. Mississippi lawmakers are advancing teacher pay raise proposals, while Maryland districts continue working toward meeting the statewide $60,000 minimum teacher salary requirement by July of this year.

As always, we hope you find the resources below helpful and meaningful for your work supporting students of color and students from low-income families across the South.

State Updates

Alabama

  • School voucher program might go universal despite budget concerns – Under current law, Alabama’s school voucher program is scheduled to expand next year to include all students regardless of income. And that has both Democratic and Republican legislators worried about public school funding. (Alabama Reflector) Read More
  • Alabama House committee OKs 2027 education budget with pay raises, some level funding – An Alabama House committee Wednesday approved a $10.4 billion Education Trust Fund budget for fiscal year 2027 that largely reflects Gov. Kay Ivey’s proposed budget from earlier this year. The budget, about $569.7 million higher (5.7%) than the current budget, includes pay raises for teachers; and less money for a health insurance program for education employees than Ivey proposed. (Alabama Reflector) Read More

Arkansas

  • State library board releases more than $1M in funding previously tabled last month – Public libraries will be able to resume summer reading programs, e-book offerings, and other services that were in limbo, after a state board freed up more than $1 million in funds it had tabled last month. (Arkansas Advocate) Read More
  • Gov. Sanders’ state budget gifts the well-to-do with school vouchers and tax cuts. Gov. Sanders’ proposed 2026-27 budget includes up to $379M for the Arkansas LEARNS vouchers, which parents who opt out of traditional public schools can tap to pay for private school or homeschool expenses.
  • Rising childcare costs are preventing moms from entering the workforce, report says – A new study by the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas examines what can be done to improve workplace flexibility, affordable child care, paid leave, and build a supportive community for moms in Arkansas. (THV 11) Read More

Delaware

  • Education secretary requests nearly $2.4B for Delaware schools – With student scores under scrutiny, state education officials are asking lawmakers to continue to invest in teachers, as well as in reforms that they say will improve reading comprehension, graduation rates, and other performance metrics. During a legislative budget committee hearing, the state Education Secretary requested a nearly 4% increase in her departmental budget for the next fiscal year. (Spotlight Delaware) Read More

Florida

  • Bill creating teacher mentorship program heads to Senate floor after its House companion falters – A bill to create a new teacher training and mentorship program for public and charter schools across Florida is now one vote from passing in the Legislature’s upper chamber. (Florida Politics) Read More

Georgia

  • Georgia House passes budget with nearly $61 million for literacy coaches – The Georgia House of Representatives approved a $38.5 billion state budget for next year on Tuesday with significant spending aimed at improving childhood literacy across the state. (WABE) Read More
  • Governor Brian Kemp’s budget includes landmark need-based aid for Georgia students – Georgia made history with a significant investment in its college hopefuls. The amended fiscal year budget signed by Gov. Kemp includes $325 million for the state’s first need-based scholarships. (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)  Read More
  • Georgia’s tax relief bills could create a major math problem for schools – Several bills aimed at providing tax relief to Georgia residents are moving through the Legislature this year. If they’re all successful, though, some economists and public officials aren’t sure how some local municipalities will make ends meet. (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution – Subscription Required) Read More
  • Georgia to Launch Need-Based DREAMS Scholarship – For years, the state’s main source of funds for college students was its merit-based HOPE Scholarship. Now, lawmakers are allocating $325 million to a need-based program to encourage students to study in the state. (Inside Higher Ed) Read More

Kentucky

  • ‘Taking money from the public’: Kentucky may pass controversial school choice bill – A school choice measure creating tax credits tied to donations for private-school scholarships is headed to Gov. Andy Beshear after passing the Kentucky legislature. The Senate approved HB 1 after the House passed it earlier this month. The bill would allow federal tax credits of up to $1,700 for contributions to scholarship funds that support students at private or religious schools. (WKRC News) Read More
  • Senate committee advances multi-pronged child care bill – House Bill 6 would lay a foundation for building a stronger, more sustainable private child care network, which includes 2,000 small businesses, nonprofits, and faith-based organizations throughout the state, among several other measures. (Forward Kentucky) Read More

Louisiana

  • Gov. Landry has to convince the Senate president to spend more on private school vouchers – The Senate President has emerged as the most prominent skeptic of Landry’s signature school voucher program, which would greatly expand the amount of public funding going toward private education expenses. The Senate President told The Times-Picayune that the Senate will not allow the LA GATOR private school voucher program to grow, despite Landry’s request. (Louisiana Illuminator) Read More

Maryland

  • Half of Maryland’s school districts still not at $60K teacher salary threshold – With just months until they have to meet a July 1 deadline to raise teacher salaries to a $60,000 minimum, only about half of Maryland’s 24 school districts have reached the threshold, and the rest are scrambling to get there. (Maryland Matters) Read More

Mississippi 

  • Mississippi Senate passes teacher pay raise bill – Shortly after a March 3 legislative deadline that saw more than a dozen teacher pay raise bills die, House legislators rewrote an existing bill in what they described as a last-ditch effort to bump teacher salaries. (Clarion Ledger) Read More
  • Governor Reeves doesn’t rule out special session to tackle teacher pay raise, expanded education freedom – At the end of a press conference Tuesday, Governor Tate Reeves (R) took questions on teacher pay raises, the state Public Employees Retirement System, and the future of the movement to provide parents in Mississippi with greater education freedom. He did not rule out a special session to address at least two of those matters. (Magnolia Tribune) Read More
  • ‘A good day for teachers’: Senate revives pay raise, ups House’s proposal to $6,000 – After the House and Senate killed each other’s teacher pay raise bills last week, they’ve revived them by amending other bills, with the Senate upping the ante on Wednesday. The Senate on Wednesday unanimously passed a $6,000 teacher pay raise with an extra $3,000 for special education teachers. The House has proposed a $5,000 raise, with an extra $3,000 for special education teachers. (Mississippi Today) Read More

Missouri

  • Budget leader proposes massive overhaul of Missouri higher education funding – A push to shift hundreds of millions of dollars among Missouri state colleges and universities ran into bipartisan skepticism Monday during a hearing of the House Budget Committee. (KSMU) Read More
  • Missouri child care subsidy cuts could hit foster kids, low-income families hardest – The Missouri House Budget Committee chairman is proposing a $51.5 million reduction in funding for child care subsidies, which could spur program reductions. (Missouri Independent) Read More

North Carolina

  • Bipartisan education panel unites NC Gov Stein, Republican leaders amid budget rift – Gov. Josh Stein and top Republicans in the General Assembly are seeking consensus on education issues after feuds over teacher pay and other budget issues in recent months. But education advocates are divided on whether the panel is actually needed. (NC Newsline) Read More
  • Families face a growing child care shortage as closures outpace openings. Child advocates and Gov. Josh Stein are urging legislators to tackle pay, subsidies, and infrastructure to improve access to child care. Inadequate child care costs the state $5.65 billion annually. (NC Health News) Read More

Oklahoma

  • Oklahoma Senate passes bill limiting college access for some students, critics say – The Oklahoma Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would bar some immigrant students from being able to pay in-state college tuition rates. (Oklahoma Voice) Read More
  • Bill would force universities to leave accreditors that required DEI practices – HB 3132, would require state universities to end partnerships with accreditation agencies that required “any diversity, equity, and inclusion practice or procedure” in the past five years. (Campus Reform) Read More

South Carolina 

  • Effort to keep homeschoolers out of voucher program stalls in SC committee – A South Carolina Senate bill that seeks to prohibit students educated at home from participating in the state’s school voucher program is stalled, and likely dead, after hitting a roadblock in committee. (The State) Read More
  • Home schooling has surged in South Carolina, with little oversight. That’s how families like it – Charter school reform and private school vouchers have dominated the school choice debate in South Carolina for years. But another K-12 sector is drawing kids from traditional public schools at a far greater rate: homeschool. (Post and Courier) Read More
  • Most new SC voucher recipients already were being privately educated, state says – Most of the students receiving the state-funded private school scholarships this school year already were being taught outside of the public education system, the state Department of Education told a state representative. (The Post and Courier – Subscription Required) Read More
  • State data shows privately enrolled students made up more than half of voucher recipients – Families and state leaders are weighing in on a South Carolina voucher program at the forefront of lawmaker discussion following the discovery of new data and investigations into the use of the funds. (WYFF 4 News) Read More

Tennessee

  • Tennessee House subcommittee approves bill to expand school voucher program – A Tennessee House subcommittee advanced a bill that would double Tennessee’s school voucher program to 40,000 students. Currently, about 20,000 students receive publicly funded scholarships through Tennessee’s Education Freedom Scholarship program to help cover private school tuition. (WBIR) Read More
  • GOP bill would require public schools to check student immigration status – A controversial bill (HB073/SB0836) allowing public schools to charge tuition for immigrant children has been revived in an amended form to instead require K-12 districts to gather student immigration status data and report it to the state’s education department. (Tennessee Lookout) Read More
  • Bill pushing for universal pre-K funding fails in state Senate – Legislation aiming to give every 4-year-old in the state access to high-quality, public preschool failed to garner approval from a key committee. (WSMV News) Read More

Texas

  • Islamic schools excluded from Texas’s $1 billion voucher program – Texas has excluded about two dozen Islamic schools from its new $1 billion voucher program for allegedly being linked to terrorist groups, a decision that has led to a lawsuit and claims of discrimination from the Muslim community. (Washington Post) Read More

Virginia

  • Governor Abigail Spanberger launches education listening tour with stop in Hampton – Education is a top priority for Gov. Spanberger, who kicked off her new state listening tour with a visit to a high school in Hampton. (13 News Now) Read More
  • State lawmakers propose guardrails for artificial intelligence use in education – Advocates of artificial intelligence praise the technology for increasing efficiency and productivity and enhancing research and problem-solving. But as schools adopt AI and students spend more time on screens, state lawmakers have questions about the technology’s impact on students’ safety, critical thinking, and learning skills. (Virginia Mercury) Read More

West Virginia

  • ​​As public schools face financial crisis, lawmakers offer no help for students in poverty Fifty-seven days into the West Virginia Legislature’s 60-day session, lawmakers have done little to pull some of the state’s public schools from the brink of financial collapse. (U.S. News and World Report) Read More
  • School aid formula reform bill moving in West Virginia Senate – A bill that could change West Virginia’s outdated school aid formula to a block grant program for county school systems in three years was amended by the Senate Education Committee to speed up additional funding for special needs students. (News and Sentinel) Read More
  • Delegates pass legislation that would change school funding framework, but not for another three years – Delegates pass legislation that would change school funding framework, but not for another three years. Financial support for the state’s public schools has been a recurring theme of this year’s legislative session, although additional dollars are not coming right away. (Metro News) Read More
  • House passes bill changing Hope Scholarship to quarterly funding – The House of Delegates passed a bill to move the Hope Scholarship funding schedule to quarterly, rather than twice a year. Earlier this year, the Finance Committee introduced a bill to more broadly refine the Hope Scholarship. (Metro News) Read More

National/Federal Updates

K-12 Education Federal and National News and Resources

  • Trump voucher offers new money for public school students, and pressure for Democrats – Blue states have long rejected school vouchers as bad for public schools and bad for taxpayers. Now the nation’s first federal program is making an offer that Democratic governors may find hard to refuse. (The Washington Post – Subscription Required) Read More
  • Families turn to states for civil rights support as Trump dismantles the Education Department – In their mostly white school district, Black students routinely heard racial slurs. It often went unpunished. (Associated Press) Read More
  • Improving student achievement: what red and blue states are doing right – There is no one party that holds all the answers. If we want to plot a strong path forward, we should ask about the states, red, blue, or purple, that are performing well overall and on these adjusted measures and have been doing so for an extended period of time. (Forbes) Read More
  • Tax season at the Statehouse: The stakes for schools – If you follow state legislatures in the South, you’ve likely seen tax proposals moving this spring. These policies raise an important question for education advocates about the role of tax policy in schools and students’ lives. (Southerners for Fair School Funding) Read More
  • Integration changed our schools, but it cost us a generation of Black teachers – Brown’s legacy is more complicated than we often admit. In the years that followed, as schools integrated, tens of thousands of Black teachers were pushed out of the profession through mass layoffs in the South and discriminatory, so-called colorblind hiring practices in the North. Seventy years later, the U.S. still struggles to build a teacher workforce that reflects the diverse communities it serves. (National Council on Teacher Quality) Read More
  • ProPublica sues Education Department for withholding records about discrimination in schools – ProPublica has sued the U.S. Department of Education in federal court, accusing it of withholding public records about how it’s enforcing civil rights protections for millions of American students. (ProPublica) Read More
  • The Cycle of Disinvestment in Public Schools: How Public School Criticism Drives Policy and Disinvestment – This policy brief examines the subset of public education critiques that are about demolition, not improvement, identifying five core themes: underachievement, inefficiency, inequality, lack of school choice, and indoctrination. The brief then explores the themes and related attacks on public education, considering how the cycle of disinvestment that the attacks are feeding. (National Education Policy Center) Read More
  • The Adequacy and Fairness of State School Finance Systems – This report evaluates all 50 states and D.C. on three core indicators, fiscal effort, statewide adequacy, and equal opportunity, and finds widespread, persistent underinvestment in K‑12 public education, particularly in high‑poverty districts. It highlights substantial inequities across student groups and states, noting that many disadvantaged students attend chronically underfunded districts. (School Finance Data) Read More
  • Opinion: A Backdoor School Voucher Scheme That Sidesteps Civil Rights and Undermines Public Oversight – Modern school voucher programs are often framed as a response to declining academic achievement and a way to expand “parent choice” by enabling private educators to operate within the public system. But in practice, vouchers operate quite differently from what they are advertised to do. (The Century Foundation) Read More

Higher Education Federal and National News & Resources 

  • Pell Grant funding shortfall on the horizon as nearly 2 million more students qualify: Pell Grants, the federal financial aid program that helps low-income Americans afford college and has enjoyed broad bipartisan support, are projected to face significant funding shortfalls that could jeopardize the education of thousands of students.  (The Hill) Read More
  • Understanding Black Students’ Experiences and Outcomes at For-Profit Colleges to Inform State Oversight – A new report from the Institute for College Access and Success offers a snapshot of Black student enrollment and outcomes at for-profit colleges paired with the perspectives of Black alumni of for-profit undergraduate and graduate programs. (The Institute for College Access and Success) Read More
  • Black students are the fastest growing demographic for Common App – Data suggests “no meaningful deviations” from previous trend after the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision ending race-conscious admissions. (K-12 Dive) Read More

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns, and if we can assist with any government affairs or advocacy issues moving forward.

Sincerely,

Fred Jones, Senior Director of Public Policy and Advocacy,

fjones@southerneducation.org

Darian Burns, Legislative and Public Policy Analyst,

dburns@southerneducation.org

Allison Boyle, Research and Policy Specialist,

aboyle@southerneducation.org