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House Republicans filed a spate of amendments to a private-school voucher bill Tuesday, including one that would require public schools that lose students to prove they were in the United States legally.

The law provides a method for school districts to receive state funds for students lost to private schools. But under an amendment sponsored by House Speaker Cameron Sexton, districts would have to show that a student who left for a private school initially produced documents proving citizenship, valid legal immigration status or was going through immigration proceedings in which a final order of removal had not been issued.

Private-school voucher expansion faces Tennessee GOP opposition

The measure, House Bill 2532, is to be considered Wednesday in the finance subcommittee, with eight proposed amendments, one of which would reduce the total number of voucher slots to 35,000, some 5,000 less than Gov. Bill Lee is requesting. 

The amendment forcing districts to show proof of legal documentation for students could run afoul of federal law that requires students to be enrolled regardless of immigration status. The House held up on passing a bill restricting immigrant students last year because of the potential for losing $1.1 billion in federal funding. 

That measure now requires schools to check students’ legal status and report it to the state. But it is unclear whether the Senate version, which would allow districts to charge tuition to undocumented students, will be amended to match the House bill.

The Senate finance committee passed its version of the private-school voucher expansion bill Tuesday, doubling the number of vouchers to 40,000.

But the large number of proposed changes to the House version could bog down passage and force the chambers to negotiate an agreement toward the end of the session, which is predicted to come in late April.

The Senate’s own plan is seeing some pushback from Republicans who think the state is moving too fast to give more students funds to enroll in private schools.

The Senate proposal, SB2247, passed 6-4 Tuesday and will be scheduled for a floor vote. Republican Sens. Joey Hensley of Hohenwald and Page Walley of Savannah voted against it, joined by Democratic Sens. Jeff Yarbro of Nashville and London Lamar of Memphis.

The House version is set to be heard by the finance subcommittee Wednesday.

Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson of Franklin, who is carrying the measure for Gov. Bill Lee, said the legislation has increased K-12 spending by $4 billion over the last decade and called the first-year voucher program a “success.”

Hensley, though, complained that the legislature is expanding the program too rapidly. He argued that the state should be able to fund the program through its regular education formula rather than putting some $305 million into vouchers, a total that has to be approved annually.

When lawmakers passed the bill last year, they included a provision that would enable it to increase by 5,000 annually. Under Lee’s budget plan, it would increase a total of 20,000.

“I’m just concerned that going forward we’re not going to be able to fund the scholarships,” Hensley said.

The vouchers are worth $7,300 this year and are expected to go up another $200 next year. 

Yarbro reminded finance committee members that last year they discussed the prospects of expanding the program and decided it wouldn’t happen quickly.

“It’s unsurprising that people are accepting this scholarship because we’re subsidizing existing behavior,” Yarbro said.

The state projected that 66% of those who would apply for the funds were enrolled in private schools already. Yarbro said Tuesday that 90% of students were attending private schools before applying for the money.

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