Mississippi lawmakers split over Education Freedom Act
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – The talk around school choice is keeping Mississippi lawmakers polarized.
Last week, WCBI spoke with State Representative Rob Roberson about what school choice means and his support of the new bill, The Mississippi Education Freedom Act.
On Monday, we spoke with State Representative Kabir Karriem about his view of the bill and how school choice could affect local communities.
“I adamantly oppose House Bill 2. My vote shows that,” said Karriem.
Even with a strong Republican majority in the House of Representatives, House Bill 2, also known as the Mississippi Education Freedom Act, passed on a narrow vote.
One key discussion topic is allowing parents to use taxpayer dollars to send their children to private schools.
Opponents, like Karriem, are also concerned that private schools will not be held to the same standards as public schools.
“I’m not in agreeance with giving public dollars to private schools. And the lack of accountability inside the Bill just made it hard for me to vote for this particular legislation,” said Karriem.
To help fund the transfer, Magnolia Student Accounts would be created for eligible students depending on their family’s income.
The vouchers would be worth $6,900 per student, which is the base cost the state pays public schools per student.
“When a child leaves that district, their money follows them. And it can have an adverse impact on not only the district, but the school that they’re leaving,” said Karriem.
Funds are to be used strictly for education purposes, like tuition or textbooks.
The bill also makes it easier for public school students to transfer to a different school district.
Home school districts will no longer have the right to veto the transfer.
It’s the receiving school district’s choice to deny or accept the student.
“It’s not in the best interest of public education. And if this bill was to pass through the senate and go to the governor’s desk, it could decimate public education in the state of Mississippi in my humble opinion,” said Karriem.
Sources said the Senate is not in favor of using public funds for private school tuition.
Earlier, they passed a different bill on school choice — focused on public-to-public transfers.
The state Treasury would be over the “Education Freedom Funds.”
House Bill 2 passed on a vote of 61 to 59, with two members not voting.
