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The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
A bill that creates a fourth option for homeschooling families in Tennessee will be heard in the Senate Education Committee on Wednesday, March 5th, 2025.
Senate Bill 0494 (SB0494) aka the “Family Right to Educational Emancipation Act” or “FREE Act” is being sponsored by Senator Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma-District 16) after being written by Tennessee based homeschool advocacy group Free YOUR Children.
The proposed legislation, which has the support of Homeschool Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) at the national level and Tennessee Home Education Association (THEA) at the state level, does not repeal any current laws or regulations regarding home education, but instead creates a new independent category that is subject to data collection, reporting, or assessment requirements which apply to existing independent home school programs.
The bill also exempts students and parents from compulsory school attendance requirements and prohibits the Department of Safety from “conditioning the issuance of a driver license or learner’s permit on a school-aged applicant’s attendance record or enrollment status.”
To homeschool in Tennessee under current statute, families either sign up as independent homeschools through their local LEA, pay an annual fee to belong to a church-related school (otherwise known as a Category IV private school), or enroll their students in a Category III non-public school offering distance learning.
SB0494 would add a distinct fourth option granting parents the ability to homeschool their children in an entirely different category that is completely unrelated to public or private schooling options.
“This bill is crucial for real freedom in Tennessee,” states Tiffany Boyd, Free YOUR Children’s founder. “Every legislator that claims they believe that parents are the best equipped to make educational decisions for their children should also lend their support. This is TRUE school choice.”
According to HSLDA, passage of the FREE Act would make Tennessee only the 12th state in the country to not require parents to “get a permission slip from the government before they homeschool their children.”
The rights of homeschool parents has the attention of lawmakers this legislative session.
Separately from HB0494, a House Joint Resolution is being sponsored by Representative Jody Barrett (R-Dickson-District 69) that proposes amending the state constitution to more fully protect the freedom of parents to choose home education.
Barrett’s resolution has allegedly been “flagged” by Governor Bill Lee, according to Tennessee Stands, making support of the FREE Act perhaps even more important.
Tennesseans who support the expansion of homeschool freedom may contact members of the Senate Education Committee before they meet on Wednesday.
Contact information for all committee members can be found below.
Sen.dawn.white@capitol.tn.gov, sen.bill.powers@capitol.tn.gov, sen.raumesh.akbari@capitol.tn.gov, sen.rusty.crowe@capitol.tn.gov, sen.ferrell.haile@capitol.tn.gov, sen.joey.hensley@capitol.tn.gov, sen.adam.lowe@capitol.tn.gov, sen.mark.pody@capitol.tn.gov, sen.kerry.roberts@capitol.tn.gov
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
