Kentucky bill renews debate on school choice and parent involvement in education

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A push for a bill in Kentucky is once again bringing up the topic of school choice.

This comes more than a year after Amendment 2, which touched on the matter, was voted down by Kentuckians.

Debates are ramping up again on the topic because House Bill 88 was filed.

"I filed this because I believe that parents have a right to have a say in their child's education, and that right should not be limited by your economic ability," said Rep. T.J. Roberts, R-Burlington.

Part of this new bill has to do with Kentucky enrolling in a school-choice federal program put into place by President Donald Trump through the Big Beautiful Bill.

Governors in each state have the power to opt in to the program. House Bill 88 would take the power to enroll in this program from Gov. Andy Beshear and give it to the state's Auditor of Public Accounts.

If Kentucky enrolls, people could donate up to $1,700 per year to those scholarship-granting organizations. It would then give financial assistance to families who earn less than 300% of the area's median income.

"It allows for individuals to donate to scholarship-granting organizations to provide financial assistance to students who otherwise could not afford private education, public education outside their district, homeschooling, or whatever the parents think is best for them," Roberts said.

Lyndon Pryor, the president and CEO of the Louisville Urban League, said he doesn't think it's that different from Amendment 2, which failed.

"You have to look at what it actually does, which, again, is working to manipulate the system such that they can pull money away from public schools and undermine that system," Pryor said. "It's about schools choosing their students, because that is what happens in the private school system. They get to choose the students that they are going to serve. They are going to choose who they want to help and who they want to harm."

Governors from Tennessee, North Carolina, Iowa, Texas and other states have already said they will opt in to the new federal program.

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