Wyoming lawmakers have introduced a new bill that would bring additional education choice options to the Cowboy State.
Education Savings Accounts, or ESA's, are one of the most popular forms of education choice. ESA's give parents the power to use their children's state education dollars for a variety of educational purposes. Education savings account programs create personal accounts that store a child’s state education dollars. With ESAs, parents can use education dollars to pay for school tuition and fees, textbooks, tutoring and special therapies and other approved expenses, so a child’s education is truly customizable. Participating families are able to choose the best education for their children through multiple providers.
HB 0166 sets up ESA's in Wyoming based on a student's household size and income:
$5,000 available to those at or below 250% of the federal poverty level
$3,000 available for those at or below 350% of the federal poverty level
$1,000 available for those at or below 400% of the federal poverty level
The proposed law allows for the funds to be used on tuition and fees, tutoring, textbooks and curriculum, computer hardware, education software, summer education tuition and fees, and other education items approved by the state.
The bill requires the students to receive instruction in reading, writing, math, civics, history, literature and science. It also requires students to take statewide assessments.
Legislators would allocate $40 million to the program if approved.