Image Credit: TN General Assembly
The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
A pro-homeschooling bill that was endorsed by both state and national homeschooling advocates died in the House Education Administration Subcommittee on Tuesday over concerns that parents might abuse their children without any state oversight.
Had it passed, the FREE Act would have made Tennessee the 14th state to enact such legislation as Wyoming passed a similar bill this year, becoming the most recent of 13 states to do so.
House Bill 0552 (HB0552), sponsored by Representative Todd Warner (R-Chapel Hill-District 92), would not have repealed any current regulations regarding homeschooling in Tennessee.
Instead, the “Family Right to Educational Emancipation Act” or FREE Act” would have created a new independent category for homeschooling that would have been exempt from compulsory school attendance while also keeping homeschool families who might have chosen the new option free of any data collection, reporting, or assessment requirements.
According to Warner, this new option would have kept homeschool families from participating in any state program like a future expansion of school vouchers that would include homeschool families or the current TSSAA rules that allow homeschool students to participate in sports at their local public schools.
Following testimony on the bill, Committee Chair William Slater (R-Gallatin-District 35) read a few lines from a letter that he received from the Sumner County Juvenile Court Judge in Slater’s district.
“It could potentially create a loophole for some rather unscrupulous parents to abuse Tennessee’s educational system,” Slater read. “And our greatest fear is unscrupulous parents when threatened with the notions of mandatory referrals for abuse would remove a child from school and place them under the umbrella of this bill so as to avoid detection.”
Slater said that while he understood “the importance of the freedom to homeschool” he nevertheless was inclined to side with the judge’s opinion which sounded strikingly similar to a Stewart County Juvenile Court Judge’s letter shared by Free YOUR Children whose founder wrote the FREE Act.
Warner, who pointed out that abused and neglected children are also found attending public and private schools, responded to Slater by saying, “We have bad actors everywhere.”
According to Myrea Ivey, a homeschool mom with nineteen years of experience in teaching her children, who testified on Tuesday, three hundred and fifty public school teachers were arrested for sex crimes perpetrated against minors in 2024.
“I’m never going to be a believer that the government knows what’s best for our children over their parents,” said Warner.
Speaking with The Tennessee Conservative yesterday, Warner said that he had requested that the bill be rolled last Thursday, something that is usually automatically done once the request is made to the Committee Chair but instead received a text message at 6 a.m. on Tuesday that they bill was scheduled to be heard that day.
Supporters who had intended to speak in support of the bill were unable to be present because of the short notice.
Warner said that he found it “very disappointing” that Slater chose not to grant the roll, especially as five other bills in the same committee were rolled.
The Tennessee Conservative has previously noted that conservative lawmakers who spoke in opposition to Governor Bill Lee’s school voucher bill, which passed earlier this year during a special session, have had their bills “flagged” in what appears to be a political tit for tat.
It would appear that this is the case for Warner.
Speaking of the other bills that Slater allowed to be rolled, Warner said, “I find that disturbing, especially when there’s a Republican Chairman and you know, you would think we would all work together but sometimes it seems like some of us members are singled out.”
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
