Louisiana Legislature Approves Historic Statewide School Choice Expansion

Legislation will dramatically increase educational options for Louisiana children

BATON ROUGE, La., April 5, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- With significant bipartisan support, the Louisiana legislature today passed a comprehensive statewide school choice bill creating a vast expansion of the publicly funded private school choice program in New Orleans as well as one of the most expansive school choice programs in the nation, marking a historic victory for Louisiana's low- and middle-income families.

The Louisiana Federation for Children—which has been a leading voice in the fight for expanded educational options in Louisiana since before the creation of the state's first voucher program four years ago—hailed the bill's passage and praised the legislative champions that helped advance the sweeping school choice measure.

"This is an extraordinary moment for Louisiana, and we commend Governor Jindal and the state legislators for their bold leadership to ensure families are provided with the quality educational options they have long awaited," said LFC chairman Eddie Rispone.

House Bill 976 calls for a statewide expansion of the Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence (SSEE) voucher program, which currently is limited to Orleans Parish. The bill passed both the House and Senate with significant bipartisan support, earning a dozen Democratic votes in the House and the support of almost half of Senate Democrats.

While the SSEE program currently is open to children of families making less than 250 percent of the federal poverty guideline who attend schools rated "F" by the state, the new legislation expands that criteria to include qualified students who attend "C" or "D" schools and live elsewhere in Louisiana.

LFC played a critical role in the advocacy effort for the legislation, including mobilizing thousands of parents and supporters to contact their legislators in support of passage. For well more than five years, LFC and its coalition allies have been a prominent voice for school choice throughout the state.

The legislation also establishes accountability standards for private schools that accept voucher students, creates a "parent trigger" for failing schools, and expands pathways to create high-quality charter schools.

House Bill 976 is now headed to the desk of Governor Bobby Jindal to be signed into law.

The Louisiana Federation for Children is a project of the American Federation for Children. To learn more, visit www.Louisiana4Children.org.

SOURCE Louisiana Federation for Children

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