A vote by House of Representatives lawmakers on the state’s school voucher bill has been set for Monday.
Lawmakers opposed to the plan Thursday by holding a news conference. They said public schools in Tennessee are improving, they're taking steps forward, and they see this bill as a big step backward.
“There's 200 million new dollars going into public schools, but then we do that with the left hand and then with the right hand we're going to pull out 3 hundred million and give it to the religious schools or private schools with no accountability - with no oversight,” said Representative Kevin Dunlap.
The plan would use taxpayer money for some five thousand students to go to private schools.
They are students who qualify for free or reduced lunches and either attend or are zoned for a school that is in the bottom 5% of schools academically across Tennessee.
The Governor has said if the bill isn't changed in any way, he plans to sign it.
