ATLANTA — A bill to create vouchers for public school students in Georgia took a major step toward becoming law Thursday, passing the state House with a one-vote margin.
This is similar to a bill that failed last year in a close vote.
It was mostly Republicans who touted the school voucher bill, such as State Rep. Matt Reeves (R-Duluth).
It creates payments of up to $6.500 for private school tuition for families with students in the bottom 25% of Georgia public schools.
It prioritizes vouchers for families earning less than $120,000 a year
Backers said such school choice would incentivize poorer-performing schools to do better.
"I want the child that is in the most difficult school system to receive the fantastic education my child receives back home at Blackburn Elementary school," state Rep. Will Wade (R-Dawsonville) told House members.
However, critics of the bill worried it would shuffle school funding at the expense of schools that need resources most.
"Funding is based on the number of children at the desks. And if the desks are empty because children have gone somewhere else using this voucher, there will be less money for schools," said state Rep. Debbie Buckner (D-Junction City).
Backers of the bill said it would actually increase education funding, with teacher raises – even if there are fewer public school students.
"Change is scary in education. But the same old thing can also be scary," Reeves said.
The bill barely passed the House, to the chagrin of a teachers union leader in the hallway.
"I think it’s a sad day for our public school students because once we are giving choice to private schools and not proving resources to under resourced students in our public schools," said Lisa Morgan, president of the Georgia Association of Educators after the vote.
The bill goes back to the Senate, where a version of it has already passed.