The House on Thursday passed a bill to make it easier for K-12 students to transfer to other public schools outside their home districts, advancing a policy priority for House Speaker Jason White.
House Bill 1435 passed the GOP-majority chamber 67-46, with partisan crossover supporting and opposing the legislation. Four Democrats joined the Republican majority to support the proposal, while 10 Republicans joined with the Democratic minority to oppose the bill.
Most Republicans who opposed the measure either represent north Mississippi, a region that has historically invested in and protected public schools, or represent the suburban area of Rankin County.
“I know what’s best for my child,” Rep. Jansen Owen, a Republican from Poplarville who authored the bill, told his colleagues. “Every parent in this room knows what’s best for their child, and the people of Mississippi know what’s best for their children. Not school personnel, not principals not superintendents.”
Mississippi currently has a very limited form of “open enrollment” that allows students to transfer from their home district to a nearby school district. However, the transfer requires the approval of both the home and receiving school districts.
Under the House-approved legislation, a student could request to transfer to another school district outside their home district, and the receiving school district would have 60 days to either accept or reject the student’s application. The home school district could no longer prevent the student from transferring to another district.
Rep. John Faulkner, a Democrat from Holly Springs who is Black, said he worried the proposal could bring re-segregation of schools because families with means would flock to well-performing school districts while poorer families would be locked in low-performing school districts.
“This pushes families toward an illusion of choice rather than pushing equality for all,” Faulkner said.
Owen, who is white, disagreed with Faulkner because he said the bill would allow open enrollment for all students, and the legislation prohibits school districts from discriminating against applicants over their race, sex and income level.
School districts receive funding through local property taxes and the state government. The state funds under the bill would follow the student from district to district, while the funds from local property taxes would stay in their original district.
Under the proposal, the state would pay the difference to the receiving school district if a student transferred. Lawmakers said they plan to allocate $5 million for transfers for the first year if the proposal becomes law.
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Rep. Omeria Scott, a Democrat from Laurel, attempted to amend the bill by removing the $5 million fund. She said it is unfair for the state to “subsidize” students who want to live in one area but attend school districts in another location. The House defeated her amendment.
The bill now heads to the Senate, where the lieutenant governor will likely refer it to the Senate Education Committee for consideration.
Senate Education Chairman Dennis DeBar, R-Leakesville, on Monday, killed a similar proposal to the one the House passed and said he doesn’t think such a proposal can currently pass the upper chamber.
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