With less than two months left in this year’s legislative session, House Republicans still haven’t scheduled a wide-ranging public school bill for debate. It would create tax credit scholarships that would pay for students to transfer from unaccredited schools to adjacent better-performing schools, and expand charter schools beyond St. Louis and Kansas City.
Majority Floor Leader Tim Jones admits there are wide differences of opinion on the bill, even among Republicans.
“We’re going to need an overwhelming number of our caucus to be supportive," Jones said. "And there’s folks that for whatever reasons have differences of opinion as to the components of that bill, and we’re trying to identify where there’s the most heartburn and where there’s the most agreement."
The bill barely passed out of the House Elementary and Secondary Education committee over a month ago. It’s sat in the House Rules Committee ever since – Jones indicates that consensus from all the stakeholders involved is necessary before the bill has a chance of passing the House.