Mississippi Senate fails to advance school choice bill

JACKSON, Miss. (WXXV)-The Mississippi Senate has killed a school choice bill that was narrowly passed by the State House a few weeks ago, a bill that has divided legislative Republicans and even some statewide officials.

House Bill 2, also called the Education Freedom Act, was rejected in a Senate Education Committee meeting Tuesday.

The bill had passed the State House by a 61-59 margin back on January 16.

A key component of the bill, if passed, would have allowed public education funds to go to private school and would allow Mississippi home school students to participate in public school extracurricular activities.

Governor Tate Reeves, a proponent of the bill, voiced his displeasure with the Senate’s failure to advance the bill. In a post on Facebook, he called out Lt. Governor Delbert Hosemann and Senate Education Committee Chairman Dennis Debar for killing what he says was a Republican legislative priority.