NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Governor Bill Lee signs dramatically designed law on Wednesday Expand school voucher access Throughout the state of volunteers that allow families to use taxpayer dollars to private school expenses, regardless of their income.
But while the $447 million initiative is touted as a “universal” program for those interested, Republican leaders included important provisions. Students who live in the country illegally will be prohibited from participating.
According to the bill, the Tennessee Department of Education will “deny” voucher applications for schools that cannot establish a legal presence of eligible students in the United States. It is unclear how the state will verify legal residence. The school’s voucher proposal does not include instructions regarding confirmation of immigration status. The department’s spokesman did not immediately respond to emails from the Associated Press.
The language is becoming increasingly embraced by Tennessee and other GOP-controlled nations in President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration agenda. Much of the focus was on Trump’s plans Massive deportation of immigrants. But some Republican-led states are now open to supporting in other areas such as schools, now that the Trump administration said that Federal immigration agencies are permitted In I’ll arrest him at schoolchurches and hospitals.
Lee is scheduled to sign the ritual bill Wednesday afternoon.
Tennessee’s new voucher program will have 20,000 educational vouchers available for around $7,000 each from 2025 to 26. Half of them will be sent to students with lower incomes, disabled people, or otherwise able to participate in the new voucher program, while eligible students to attend public schools will have access to the remaining 10,000 people.
Tennessee Republicans can opt out of enrolling their children, in addition to banning those who cannot prove that their legal residence status in the US will be participating in the latest school voucher program. We also introduced another proposal to do so. “It exists illegally” in the country.
The bill’s sponsors specifically hope that they will challenge the 1982 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that the state cannot deny free public education to students due to immigration status. I say it.
“The Tennessee community should have to suffer and pay when the federal government fails to secure our borders,” Republican Rep. William Lambers said in a statement. “Our duty is to ensure high quality education for legal residents first.”
This is a proposal previously voted within the Tennessee Legislature in 2022. At the time, the Tennessee Department of Education opposed the bill, testifying that the proposal violated the Supreme Court precedent and conflicted with federal laws that prohibit districts and charters from demanding citizenship status. .
At the first hearing three years ago, an aide with an educational institution told lawmakers that the bill was “legally difficult,” and providing free public education to undocumented students was “the law.” “The issue was resolved by the Supreme Court,” he said.
So far, the law hasn’t progressed much within the state capitol this year.
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Associated Press Writer Jonathan Mattise contributed to this report.
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