Recent Republican School Choice Reforms

January 2013
This document is intended to provide a brief ongoing record of recent school choice reforms undertaken
by current and immediate former Republican governors. Policies are grouped as follows: 1) Innovative
options for parents of children in the lowest performing schools, 2) Public school choice through high-
quality charter schools, and 3) Virtual schools and digital learning
Innovative options for parents of children in the lowest performing schools
In 2011, Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels signed the School Scholarship Act (SSA). The SSA
creates one of the largest and most expansive school voucher systems in the nation. Under SSA
low-income and middle-income students are eligible to receive a voucher. The SSA also includes
a provision that doubles the preexisting cap on the scholarship tax-credit program.
1

In 2012, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal signed Act 2 (SB 976) into law expanding the
Student Scholarships for Excellent Education program statewide. This program provides private
school scholarships to low income students in failing schools and was previously limited to
schools in the states Recovery School District. Act 2 also ushered in the innovative Louisiana
Course Choice program. Unlike any program in the country, Course Choice allows private
businesses and providers to submit course plans to the state Department of Education. Once a
course has been approved, high school students can elect to participate in the course with a
fraction of the state per pupil funding following the student to the course provider.
In 2011, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker signed Act 32 and expanded the states already
successful school voucher program by removing enrollment caps and allowing more schools to
participate in Milwaukee and the surrounding communities. A new program was also created to
serve students in Racine.
2

Research indicates that tax scholarship programs not only provide students with more
opportunities but also improve public schools with competitive options.
[1]
The Florida Tax

1
"Enrolled Act, House Bill 1033." Indiana House of Representatives. N.p., 10 Mar. 2012. Web. 05 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.in.gov/legislative/bills/2012/HE/HE1033.1.html>.
2
"Senate Bill 155." Kslegislature.org. Kansas State Legislature, 1 July 2012. Web. 4 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2011_12/measures/documents/sb155_enrolled.pdf>.
[1]
Greene, Jay P., Ph.D, and Marcus A. Winters, Ph.D. "The Effect of Special Education Vouchers on Public School
Achievement: Evidence From Floridas McKay Scholarship Programs." Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. N.p., Apr.
2008. Web. 03 Oct. 2012. <http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/cr_52.htm>.
Credit Scholarship Program allows corporations in the state to receive a dollar for dollar tax
credit for contributions made to student scholarship organizations that award scholarships to low
income students. In the 2011-2012 school years, a total of 40,248 students were awarded
scholarships and 55 percent of all those students were from single-adult households. The number
of schools who participated in the program was 1,216 schools. In 2011-2012, this program
received over $136 million in donations, an amount that has nearly quadrupled since the 2004-
2005 school year.
[2]

Arizonas School Tuition Organization (STO) tax credit program is funded through corporate
and individual donations. In return, they receive a dollar for dollar state income tax credit.
Arizonas STO tax credits allow primarily special needs students and economically
disadvantaged students to attend a private school of their choice. The STO Program has both
individual and corporate tax credits. In 2011, $47 million in individual tax credits resulted in
25,312 scholarships. On the corporate side, 69 businesses donated over $11 million for
scholarships for low-income students which resulted in 4,578 scholarships awarded. In 2012,
Governor Jan Brewer signed SB 1047 which more than doubled the individual tax credit for a
donation to an STO. The amount above the existing credit must go to students in need akin to the
corporate tax credit.
In the state of Pennsylvania, more students will have access to educational choices as a result of
Governor Tom Corbetts approval of House Bill 761. The bill commits an additional $25
million to the highly successful Education Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program, which
awards scholarships to low-income students. The EITC program uses a tax credit funding
mechanism, wherein in a business may claim a credit worth 75 percent of its contribution to
scholarship organizations, or 90 percent if the company commits donations for two consecutive
years. The maximum donation in a single year is $300,000 per company.
In addition, the bill authorized the establishment of a new $50 million program known as the
Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) program, which awards scholarships to students in
failing schools. The OSTC program uses a tax credit funding mechanism, wherein in a business
may claim a credit worth 75 percent of its contribution to scholarship organizations, or 90
percent if the company commits donations for two consecutive years. Scholarship organizations
provide funding to eligible students who reside within the attendance boundary of the lowest
performing 15 percent of public schools to attend another public or nonpublic school of their
choice. The maximum donation in a single year is $300,000 per company.
The implementation of Education Savings Accounts (ESA) is an effective and innovative way to
address low-performing schools and provides complete educational choice for parents. ESAs

[2]
Figlio, Daniel N. "Evaluation of the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program." Aug. 2011. Web. 25 Sept. 2012.
<http://www.stepupforstudents.org/Portals/0/Resources/Documents/Independent'Studies/11%20FTC%20Test%20Score%20Repo
rt.pdf>.
create an incentive for low-performing schools to raise their performance outcomes or risk
parents choosing other options for their childs education. While vouchers give parents the
ability to choose between public or private schools, ESAs provide parents with a debit card that
is linked directly to the state-designated dollars for their child. Parents can use the money in any
variety of ways, including: online courses, private tutoring, charter schools, or community
college courses. Unique to ESAs is the ability to roll any remaining money into a college
education savings account. In 2012, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed House Bill 2622
expanding the number of children eligible for Arizonas Empowerment Scholarship Account
(ESA) program from 125,000 to almost 244,000, about 23 percent of all Arizona students.
Arizonas ESAs were originally implemented in 2011 to ensure that the educational needs of
families with special-needs students were being met. HB 2622 expands eligibility to children
attending a failing school, children who are adopted or in foster care, or are part of a military
family.
[3]

To address the problem of chronically low-performing schools, Tennessee, under Governor
Bill Haslam, looked to Louisianas Recovery School District (RSD) and put into operation the
Achievement School District (ASD), a statewide school district with the goal of moving schools
in the bottom 5 percent to the top 25 percent over five years. This year, of the 85 schools that fell
on the states priority schools list (a list of the schools in the bottom 5 percent), the ASD took in
six of themthree will be directly run by the ASD and three will be run by a charter that the
ASD has authorized. The state has placed the remaining 79 schools on the priority list in ASD-
like innovation zones created by the district or on a watch list. Over time, the watch list will
shrink as more and more schools are pulled into the ASD or an innovation zone. In an effort to
transform communities and not just individual schools, the ASD has structured itself in a way to
expand within as opposed to across feeder patterns. The idea is to prevent the filtering of
students in ASD-eligible elementary schools into poor-performing middle and high schools.
In 2011, Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin signed House Bill 1744 which amends The Lindsey
Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program Act (LNHS). The Act was
passed to ensure that students with physical and mental disabilities are eligible to receive
scholarships to attend private schools. The Act allows students with disabilities who have an
individualized education program (IEP) to qualify for a scholarship to attend any public or
private school that meets the accreditation requirements of the State Board of Education. The bill
authorizes the State Department of Education to administer the program rather than local school
districts to increase consistency and reliability for students and parents who choose to participate
in the program.

[3]
"House Bill 2622." Azleg.gov. Arizona State Legislature, 15 May 2012. Web. 4 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/49leg/1r/bills/hb2622h.pdf>.

Gov. Fallin also signed SB 969 in 2011. This legislation creates a tax credit scholarship
program allowing children in families with incomes up to 300 percent of Free/Reduced Lunch
to qualify for awards. Scholarships are provided by Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGO),
donations to which are eligible for a 50% tax credit or a 75% credit if the donor commits to
giving the same amount to the SGO in the following two years. The bill places a total statewide
cap on tax credits of $3.5 million annually, with a separate cap of $1.5 million in credits for
(separate) donations to public schools. Eligible students can receive scholarships worth up to the
greater of $5,000 or 80 percent of the average per-pupil expenditures in the school districts
where they reside, not to exceed the tuition, fees, and transportation costs of attending a private
school. Scholarships for children with special needs may not exceed $25,000.
Ohio enacted a special needs voucher in the 2011 budget legislation signed by Gov.
Kasich. The new program allows special needs students currently enrolled in public schools to
attend private schools and receive additional services at private therapists and other service
providers. Non-resident public school districts may also accept scholarship students. The
number of scholarships available is capped at five percent of the students with special needs in
the state and scholarships are worth 90 percent of students special education funding amounts,
with a cap of $20,000.
Ohio's 2011 budget legislation also included language expanding a program that helps students
escape under-performing schools. The language expands the statewide cap on the number of
scholarship awards from 14,000 to 60,000 and says that a student is now eligible not only if
his/her current public school is in one of the bottom two state ratings categories for two of the
previous three years, but also if the school is rated in the lowest ten percent of schools for two of
the previous three years.
Public school choice through high-quality charter schools
Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval successfully reformed the policies surrounding the
authorization of Nevadas charter schools during the 2011 legislative session.. Senate Bill 212,
championed by Governor Sandoval, establishes a statewide charter authorizing board, which
may authorize and sponsor charter schools in the state, in addition to postsecondary education
institutions and school districts.
In 2011, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder signed Senate Bill 618 transforming state charter
school legislation. SB 618 removes the cap on the number of charter schools that state
universities may authorize by 2015. The bill also ensures that charter schools are held to the
same rigorous standards as public school and demands increased transparency for contracts
awarded to charter schools.
[2]


[2]
"Michigan SB 618." MI.gov. Michigan State Senate, 4 Jan. 2012. Web. 19 Sept. 2012.
<http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2011-2012/billanalysis/Senate/pdf/2011-SFA-0618-N.pdf>.
In 2011, the Georgia Supreme Court struck down the states charter school law that allowed a
statewide authorizing commission to hear appeals from charter schools rejected by local school
boards and authorize charters. Because of this action, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal
championed a state constitutional amendment, which was overwhelmingly approved by Georgia
voters in the 2012 election, to allow a state charter school commission to approve charter schools
denied by local boards of education.
In 2011 Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels signed HB 1002 to expand state school choice by
creating the Indiana Charter School Board, as a new statewide sponsor of charter schools. The
legislation also allows non-profit private colleges and universities to authorize charter schools.
Significant to the bill is a new provision that makes it possible for traditional public schools to
convert to a charter if a parents of a majority of students at the school petition for the conversion.
The legislation also requires that unused public school buildings be offered to charter schools
through a list maintained by the Indiana Department of Education. If a charter school is
interested in using an unused public school building, the district is required to sell or lease that
school building to the charter school for $1.
[4]

In the state of Maine, one in every five high school students does not graduate from drops out of
high school. To address the high dropout rate, stagnant educational achievement, and provide
parent and student choice, Governor Paul LePage signed LD 1553 (2011) making Maine the 41
st

state to allow public charter schools. While the legislation caps the number of charter schools
authorized by the statewide authorizing commission until 2022 and the charter school enrollment
based on the size of the school administrative unit, the National Alliance for Public Charter
Schools recognized the law as the top charter school law in the country. In particular, the law is
noted for its creation of the State Charter Schools Commission, which can approve charter
schools to operate statewide and is the only entity that can approve virtual charter schools.
In 2011, Florida Governor Rick Scott signed SB 1546 (2011), which established high-
performing charters based upon Floridas A-F school grade model and allowed these charters to
increase student enrollment, expand grade levels served, and replicate high-performing charters
in other school districts.
In 2012, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal signed HB 976, which expands eligible charter
authorizers to include community groups, non-profit organizations, and universities. The bill also
updates rules regarding charter school authorization term lengths and accountability, including a
process where charter schools can have their charter revoked if they perform poorly in the state
accountability system.

[4]
"Indiana Code 20-26-7." Indiana Code. Indiana General Assembly, n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title20/ar26/ch7.html>.


In 2012, South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley signed HB 3241 (2012), which expands the
number of students who can benefit from a charter school by allowing higher education
institutions to authorize charter schools.
A policy reform that is steadily gaining momentum nationally and is a part of Indianas school
choice reform is the practice of Parent Trigger. When a school is identified as low-performing,
often for several years, parents may collect signatures that represent 50 percent of the student
body and force a major school intervention. Some parents may consider replacing teachers and
administrators, closing the school, or converting from a public school to a private charter.
Virtual Schools and digital learning
In 2011, Florida Governor Rick Scott signed House Bill 7197 to reform Floridas already
successful virtual school laws. House Bill 7197 expands the virtual school to offer the option of
full-time instruction to K-12 students and a part-time instruction option to students in fourth
through twelfth grade. The bill also requires all students to take one online course to earn a high-
school diploma and allows for the creation of virtual charter school in every Florida school
district.
In 2012, Iowa Governor Terry Branstad signed Senate File 2284 to expand Iowa Learning
Online (ILO). ILO utilizes the internet, Iowa Communication Network, and video classrooms to
provide an alternative form of education to high school students across the state. SF 2284 directs
the Iowa Department of Education to construct an online program and blended learning model to
provide access to high quality learning to students enrolled in a participating district or
accredited nonpublic institution. All courses will be taught by state-licensed teachers. Open
enrollment of students, to a school district that offers online coursework, is limited to two school
districts, whose public-private online learning program was grandfathered in through June 2015.
These districts may not serve more than 900 students.
3

In 2011, Utah Governor Gary Herbert signed Senate Bill 65 which allows students attending
traditional or public charter schools to take up to two high school level courses from an approved
digital learning provider. Private school and home school students will be also be eligible to
participate in the Statewide Online Education Program beginning in the 2013-14 school year.
[2]


3
"An Act Relating to Programs and Activities Under the Purview of the Department of Education, the State Board of Education,
the Board of Educational Examiners, the State Board of Regents, School Districts, and Accredited Nonpublic Schools, and
Including Effective Date Provisions." The Iowa Legislature Bill Book. The Iowa State Legislature, 25 May 2012. Web. 16 Oct.
2012. <http://coolice.legis.iowa.gov/Cool-ICE/default.asp?Category=billinfo>.
[2]
Stephenson, Howard, and Bradley Daw. "STATEWIDE ONLINE EDUCATION PROGRAM." Utah State Senate. Utah State
Senate, 9 Mar. 2011. Web. 24 Oct. 2012. <http://le.utah.gov/~2011/bills/sbillenr/SB0065.pdf>.


The Louisiana Course Choice Program, SB 976 signed by Governor Bobby Jindal in 2012, also
provides high school students greater access to individual online courses. Under this program
students may supplement their class schedule with approved individual courses, including virtual
courses, offered by private providers.
In 2012, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder signed Senate Bill 619 that increased the number of
students who can take advantage of online public schools. It raised the number of allowed cyber
schools from two to fifteen and increased the number of students allowed to enroll in such
schools statewide from 1,000 to two percent of the total number of public school students in the
state. The bill also allowed community colleges and school districts to create online charter
schools.
In 2012, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal signed SB 289, which requires all Georgia students to
take at least one online course in order to graduate from high school, starting in 2014-2015. The
bill provides up to $250 per semester per course and prohibits districts from limiting students
from enrolling in Georgia Virtual School.
In 2011 former Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels signed legislation (House Bill 1429)
expanding the states definition of "textbook" to include hardware, software, and digital
content. This legislation thus provides local administrators and school districts with added
flexibility to meet students 21
st
century learning needs.
In 2012, Alabama Governor Robert Bentley signed HB 165, which allows for high school
students and teachers to use approved textbooks and instructional materials in digital format, and
also allows for high school students and teachers to purchase tablets, laptops or similar wireless
electronic devices to be used in lieu of textbooks and other instructional materials.