ACTION ALERT / Week in Review: Saturday, March 25
Legislative Week 10
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ACTION ALERT
Voucher Bill Vote Expected Monday
Concerned Educators Should Contact House Members
To Make Their Voices Heard
Thursday, after extensive debate lasting nearly two hours, the House postponed a vote on SB 233 from Sen. Greg Dolezal (R-Cumming), which would create the state’s third private school voucher program. In a last-minute move before the bill was presented to House members, SB 233 was revised to remove the requirement that participating private school students take the state assessments mandated for public school students. This requirement, requested by PAGE and other education groups, was added by the House Education Committee to provide parents and policymakers with comparable data to determine the effectiveness of the program. Its removal significantly diminishes the program’s transparency and undermines parents’ ability to make informed decisions about participating in the voucher program.
The delay in voting was unexpected and likely means there are not currently enough votes to pass SB 233. A bipartisan group of House members has significant concerns about the bill and does not support it.
Georgia’s existing voucher programs carry a price tag of more than $150 million every year. SB 233 would significantly increase that sum -- diverting even more taxpayer dollars from public school students. Despite this, and despite requests by PAGE and other education groups for an official analysis of SB 233’s cost to the state, no such analysis has been done.
The House is expected to vote on SB 233 Monday. All educators concerned about the bill and its diversion of public funds to private schools without fiscal transparency or mandated assessments to provide insight on student academic progress, should contact House members to voice those concerns.
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An overview of SB 233, inclusive of additional detail of PAGE concerns, is available HERE.
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Troubling findings from evaluations of voucher programs in other states reveal that voucher students do worse academically than students in public schools. This information is available HERE.
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A PAGE analysis of how the proposed voucher program could affect rural students can be accessed HERE.
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PAGE advocacy resources -- including best practices for contacting lawmakers -- are available HERE.
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House member contact information can be accessed by entering your home address on the Open States website HERE. Please note that Open States labels House members using the signifier "Lower Chamber." In messages to Representatives, be sure to mention your city, town, or county in the subject line and body of your message, so your House member knows you are a constituent.
As always, educators should use their personal (not school) email address and electronic device and contact policymakers outside of instructional time. The most persuasive legislator messages are personalized and demonstrate an educator’s commitment to the students the educator serves.
Additional Week 10 Legislative Action
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Committees in both chambers passed multiple education-related bills in hopes of getting them passed into law by next Wednesday, March 29, the final day of the 2023 legislative session also known as Sine Die. PAGE Capitol Reports for Days 36, 37, and 38 provide a roundup of bills that moved forward.
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Literacy has been a focal point for both chambers with the Senate putting forward SB 211 and the House offering HB 538. After moving through their originating chambers and respective committees, SB 211 awaits a vote from the House, and HB 538 needs a vote from the Senate. The Senate added $250,000 to support the creation of the Georgia Council for Literacy outlined in SB 211 to its version of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 budget. No funds have yet been added to support the implementation of HB 538, which includes required training for teachers and new assessments to be given three times a year to all K-3 students.
- Led by Rep. Matt Hatchett (R-Dublin), chair of the House Appropriations Committee, and Sen. Blake Tillery (R-Vidalia), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, a conference committee of six Senate and House leaders is working to resolve the differences between the FY 2024 budget proposals each chamber approved. Their compromise plan for state spending must be voted on by both chambers before session ends Wednesday.
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Stay Up to Date on Legislative Action
To learn more about this week's activity: click here, on the Capitol Reports icon below, or visit our website at www.pageinc.org and choose the legislative tab.
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Contact Us
PAGE is honored to serve you as you serve others. Please contact us at any time should you have questions, concerns, or need assistance. To reach the PAGE legislative team, reply to this message or send an email using the contact information listed beneath the staff photo below. To reach all other PAGE departments, call 770-216-8555 / 800-334-6861. If you're not sure which department to contact, send an email to info@pageinc.org, and we'll direct it to the appropriate PAGE staff member for response.
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PAGE Legislative Staff
Your PAGE advocacy team tracks and reports on General Assembly activity according to legislative priorities established by direct member input. Each fall, these priorities are developed by the Legislative Advisory Committee ⎻ comprised of the PAGE Board of Directors and members from each of Georgia’s congressional districts ⎻ and through the annual pre-session survey. Through meetings with lawmakers, presentations at committee meetings, media interviews, and more, the PAGE advocacy team promotes legislation beneficial to Georgia educators and public education while also working to stop harmful bills.
Click here to view PAGE 2023 Legislative Priorities, or access by visiting www.pageinc.org and choosing the Legislative tab.
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Claire Suggs
Senior Education Policy Analyst
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Josh Stephens
Legislative Services Specialist
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Margaret Ciccarelli
Director of Legislative Services
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