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By Sam Stockard

Tennessee Lookout
NASHVILLE — Gov. Bill Lee called a special session Wednesday for late January when Tennessee lawmakers will be asked to take up his private-school voucher bill, immigration measures and a plan to provide funding for hurricane-ravaged counties in Northeast Tennessee, a combination that is drawing criticism.

Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle challenged the governor’s decision to combine the three issues in one special session, which has no time frame. Democrats say the governor is using hurricane relief funds to pressure lawmakers to vote for his education voucher plan.

Republican Sen. Richard Briggs of Knoxville said Wednesday the special session should focus on only one issue.

“I’m not sure it’s legal, but I’m not sure it makes any difference either,” Briggs said, referring to the governor’s call to deal with three disparate topics.

Numerous Republican legislators are traveling to Washington, D.C., next week for the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump and will return Jan. 27 to jump into the special session.

The disaster package for the eight counties hit by Hurricane Helene is likely to cost around $450 million. The private-school voucher plan, which would go statewide for up to 20,000 students the first year and then expand, is expected to cost $144 million annually, in addition to about $275 million, plus funds to give teachers a one-time $2,000 bonus. Another 80% of all sports wagering money is to be dedicated to building and maintaining K-12 public schools as part of the bill.

The state would cover the cost of counties that lose students for one year, although some lawmakers are questioning whether school districts would be “held harmless,” based on the state’s K-12 funding formula.

The governor also has confirmed he would deploy the National Guard if requested by Trump to deport undocumented immigrants. Lawmakers are expected to take up several bills related to immigration, some of which are designed to crack down on undocumented residents and others that could give them some protection.

Briggs said Wednesday he didn’t understand why the legislature couldn’t take up hurricane relief funding as its first bill. The governor used $100 million in TennCare funds to make loans to affected counties, which are supposed to be reimbursed by the federal government for spending.

Several lawmakers say the state should have done more immediately.

Republican Rep. Todd Warner of Chapel Hill, who has been a critic of the governor’s private-school voucher program, declined to say whether he thought the governor would use the flood-relief money to pressure lawmakers into voting for the private-school voucher plan.

“After the storm, we should have taken a week for assessments, and the special session should have been called then,” Warner said. “I’m all for helping those people in East Tennessee, whatever it takes to get those people some help.”

Yet Democratic Rep. John Ray Clemmons, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, said he found it “wholly inappropriate” for the governor to ask lawmakers to take up the two issues in the same special session. Lawmakers should have been called already to consider funding for “devastated” families and communities in Northeast Tennessee, he said.

“Gov. Bill Lee has waited almost four months so he could pair that with voucher votes and try to spend that time lining up voucher votes rather than helping families who needed assistance,” Clemmons said. “That’s offensive on multiple levels.”

Senate Minority Leader Raumesh Akbari of Memphis said the governor’s call likely depended on whether he had enough votes to pass the voucher plan, which has been an issue since she was elected 12 years ago. If it passes, hundreds of millions of dollars will go into the program, even though other states have been hit hard financially and seen poor results from students.

“It’s connected to immigration and hurricane relief, making this a political issue rather than something that should focus on policy,” Akbari said.

In contrast, Lt. Gov. Randy McNally said he sees no problem with combining the questions. “The two things are separate,” said McNally, referring to the voucher bill and hurricane relief.

Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson said he doesn’t believe the governor is using flood relief funds to pressure lawmakers to vote for the voucher bill. Johnson, a Franklin Republican, said he considers it appropriate to put the flood relief matter into the same session as private-school vouchers.

“We have hurricane victims who need relief, and we’ve got a school choice bill that’s gonna help 20,000 families across the state. They’re both time sensitive,” Johnson said. “It’s not unusual at all.”

Rep. Gary Hicks, a Rogersville Republican, said Wednesday he’s “heard whispers” that the governor threatened to withhold flood money in Northeast Tennessee lawmakers’ districts if they don’t vote for the private-school voucher bill. But Hicks said he has not been urged to vote for the education bill or face the loss of funding for Hawkins County, which was on the edge of the hurricane and sustained mostly wind damage.

The Tennessee Education Association, the state’s main teacher union, said Wednesday lawmakers should be dealing with hurricane damage.

TEA President Tanya Coats said, “While the General Assembly considers measures to support those recovering from a natural disaster, they should refrain from creating a manmade disaster.”

Some lawmakers are worried about the long-term effects of private-school vouchers, which after the first year could be doled out regardless of family income.

The teacher group says cutting state support for public schools to fund a voucher program will force local governments to make up the difference by raising taxes or reducing services.

Lee’s plan would provide 20,000 “scholarships” worth $7,075 for students to enroll in private schools in 2025-26 with 10,000 of those for students from families at or below 300% of the maximum income to qualify for free or reduced-price lunches – which is estimated to be nearly $175,000 per household income. Students with disabilities and those in the state’s education savings account program would be eligible too, although critics of the program say private schools won’t be prepared to serve them.

The state could add 5,000 “scholarships” each year.

About 350 private schools would be eligible to participate in the program and would be required to administer the state’s standardized test or one that fits their curriculum.

One of the main complaints about the bill has been that it would drain money from public schools, a concern local school boards haven’t hesitated to pass on to lawmakers.

But this year’s version says a school district’s funding “shall not decrease from one year to the next due to the disenrollment of students.” If districts lose students, though, the state would pay additional funds to those districts to cover transfers for just one year.

The bill denies “scholarships” to undocumented students, even though a 1982 Supreme Court case, Plyler v. Doe, prohibits states from denying students a free public education based on immigration status.

Lawmakers adopted the education savings account program in 2019 that set up a voucher program for low-income students in Shelby and Davidson counties. The House approved the measure after former Speaker Glen Casada held the vote open for nearly 45 minutes to work the chamber for one vote after members deadlocked in a tie.

Republican Rep. Jason Zachary of Knoxville flipped his “no” vote to “yes,” enabling the bill to pass.

An FBI investigation followed to determine whether lawmakers were offered personal rewards for their votes, but no one has been indicted.

 

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