Another win for Desantis: New school choice legislation signed

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BREAKING: DeSantis announces signing of universal school choice expansion

"[It] will represent the largest expansion of education choice not only in the history of this state, but in the history of these United States. That is a big deal [...] The results speak for themselves."

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Note: This article may contain commentary reflecting the author's opinion.
On Monday, Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) signed a sweeping school choice bill, House Bill 1, that brings education freedom to the state of Florida.


“We will be signing legislation that represents the largest expansion of education choice not only in the history of this state but in the history of the United States,” DeSantis said during the bill signing. “That is a big deal.”

DeSantis then explained that Florida is number one in various factors of education freedom including voucher enrollments, private scholarships, and other initiatives that make Florida education successful.


“Over the years as Florida has embraced parental choice and education freedom… we now have 380,00 students in charter schools,” he said, adding that 1.3 million students utilize some sort of school choice program.


DeSantis then explained that his government has been able to ensure that students can go to schools that they want and get the resources that they need in order to be successful.






The bill “expands school choice to every single student in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said, adding that every student will be able to utilize school choice scholarships and that parents will get to choose where that money goes.

“This bill is a major game changer. I think yet again we are leading the country when it comes to things like education choice,” DeSantis said, adding that he is doing this because of the tremendous results that have come about due to school choice.

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The legislation will expand school choice vouchers to all students in the state, among other school related measures.

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The legislation expands eligibility for Florida’s school choice scholarships to all students who are residents of Florida and eligible to enroll in K-12 in a public school.

Currently, Florida offers scholarship programs that allow parents of certain students to register and attend private schools that aim to better serve a student’s particular needs or to provide educational options for students with disabilities.

Eligibility for all school choice programs is currently limited by state law in the form of an income or enrollment cap. The bill will expand eligibility for Florida’s School Choice Scholarships to all students who are residents of Florida.

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The legislation also eliminates the waiting list for students with unique abilities to ensure their unique needs are met. It also allows parents to use “Education Savings Accounts” to cover eligible educational products and services.

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