Open enrollment bill clears Missouri House for fifth year in a row

by Annelise Hanshaw, Missouri Independent
March 12, 2025

Legislation that would allow students to enroll in neighboring school districts won approval from the Missouri House on Wednesday. 

The 88-69 vote saw 22 Republicans join with all but three Democrats in opposition. It now heads to the Missouri Senate.

The bill’s sponsor, Republican state Rep. Brad Pollitt of Sedalia, has filed the legislation for five years in a row.  It narrowly passed the House four times but has never come to a vote in the Senate.

Over the years, the bill has shifted with protections added, like a 3% cap on the number of students that may leave a school district each year. School districts may opt in to accept students, but schools do not have an option to restrict students from leaving.

“This bill has been vetted tighter than any other bill,” Pollitt said during the debate Wednesday.

Supporters of the legislation commended it as a solution to make public schools more competitive during times when programs that allow public funding for private schools are growing nationwide.

State Rep. John Black, a Marshfield Republican, said he is “perplexed that any public-school advocate would oppose this bill.”

Black voted against a bill passed last year that boosted MOScholars, a tax credit program that diverts general fund dollars to pay for private school tuition.

State Rep. Marlene Terry, a Democrat from St. Louis, also spoke in favor of the bill Wednesday. Last year, she broke from much of her party as a deciding vote in passing the MOScholars bill.

She is grateful for her choice, she said, because a student from her district was able to attend the school of his choice. Terry became emotional, saying the boy recently died.

“Pass this bill,” she said. “Because you never know what might happen.”

Opponents say unpredictability is exactly why the bill shouldn’t pass.

State Rep. Kathy Steinhoff, a Columbia Democrat, said future legislative sessions could remove protections in the bill.

“We have no guarantees that next year bills won’t come forward to remove the opt-in provision, or remove the 3%,” she said. “And these things could devastate our communities.”

She pointed to the legislation establishing MOScholars, which passed in 2021 and was expanded last year. The program was written to be funded by tax-credit-eligible donations, but Gov. Mike Kehoe proposed in his budget this year to give $50 million to the fund.

“It’s not hard to see that we’re taking money from public schools,” she said.

Democrats in opposition asked for funding for public schools instead of open enrollment.

“We should be focusing on the issues where the students live,” said State Rep. Raychel Proudie, a Democrat from Ferguson.

If schools are marked as failing and students leave, it will hurt property values and further reduce the funding for public schools in the area because of the lower property tax revenue, she said.

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