1/13/26 Legislative Alert: House Education Expected to Take Up HB 2 (School Choice)

Rep. Rob Roberson of Starkville, Chairman of the House Education Committee, has called a meeting of the House Education Committee for 9:00 a.m. tomorrow, Wednesday, January 14. MPE anticipates House Education will consider HB 2, Speaker of the House Jason White’s school choice bill, during tomorrow morning’s meeting as several House members have shared they expect the entire House chamber to consider the bill Thursday.

Among other concerning provisions of the bill, HB 2:

• Allows public funds to pay for private school tuition via vouchers. HB 2 also allows families who homeschool to apply for vouchers for educational expenses.
• Exempts private or homeschools from accountability measures our state’s public schools are held to. HB 2 provides that private schools cannot be required to adjust their admissions or academic standards, administer statewide assessments, or be subjected to the state accountability system.
• Creates public school choice by amending current law to remove a local district’s authority to stop/deny a student’s transfer to another public school district.
• Expands charter schools statewide, allows charters to open in any school district, and does not require local board approval in A, B or C districts.
• Revises the definition of “Net enrollment” for purposes of the Mississippi Student Funding Formula to limit it to students in kindergarten through Grade 12; thus, the formula will not provide funds for pre-K students. 
• Includes provisions of the Tim Tebow Act which allows homeschool students to participate in public school extra-curricular activities.

Beneficial provisions of the bill – such as an assistant teacher pay raise, literacy and math initiatives, and changes to Tier 5 – are held hostage to other issues in the omnibus 553-page bill. These issues are worthy of individual debate and consideration. They should not be used as political pawns in the school choice debate.

In MPE’s 2025 Member Survey conducted this past October, 74% of members opposed school choice legislation that would allow public tax dollars to fund school vouchers or educational savings accounts (ESAs). In addition, 83% of our members indicated any private or homeschool that receives public funds via vouchers or ESAs should be held accountable for the use of the public funds and students’ academic outcomes. Finally, 61% of our members opposed public to public school choice that would allow public school students to transfer to another public district of their choosing regardless of their residency.

This session stands to fundamentally change education in our state, as school choice will create two educational systems with unlevel playing fields. HB 2’s exemption of private and homeschools from the standards and accountability requirements our public schools are held to is a perfect example of this.

House Education Committee members are under a great deal of pressure from the House leadership to pass HB 2, as it is Speaker White’s top priority for the legislative session. Committee members, as well as other rank and file House members, are elected to represent the constituents of their House district, not the legislative leadership. It is critical that concerned educators and Mississippians contact House Education Committee members before tomorrow’s 9:00 a.m. committee meeting to share their thoughts on HB 2.