Voucher Plan Spiked

Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris – who was carrying the school voucher bill for Governor Bill Haslam – says it is dead for the year. Photo credit Blake Farmer/WPLN

Governor Bill Haslam has sacrificed his own bid to start a school voucher program in Tennessee. He had been threatening to pull his proposal if anyone tried to tinker with it.

Many Republicans wanted a broader voucher bill, and Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris says they wouldn’t stand down.

“This is not meant to be a political football,” he told reporters. “There was sort of too much brinksmanship.”

Governor Haslam had proposed limiting school vouchers to poor students attending failing schools, and capping the number of vouchers to 5,000 in the first year.

Other lawmakers proposed paying private school tuition for anyone whose family makes less than $75,000 a year, and they say there’s still a way to get something passed this year.

“This was definitely a minor set back and disappointing that the governor pulled his support,” says Sen. Brian Kelsey (R-Germantown). “I am fully committed to helping these low income children get the quality education that they deserve.”

The Senate Education Committee has already shut down for the year, though it can reconvene at the will of the chairman. She happens to be Sen. Dolores Gresham (R-Somerville) who supports a broader voucher bill.

However, the senate has been much more gung-ho on school vouchers. The chamber passed a bill in 2011 that failed in the House, which has shown less enthusiasm.