Overview

• Rewrites Title I federal education funding (aid for disadvantaged students) to create a 'money follows the child' system
• Prohibits federal mandate of Common Core or any multi-state academic standards
• Currently in House Education and Workforce Committee (introduced status)

Who does this affect?

• Main groups: Low-income K-12 students (ages 5-17 from families below poverty line), their parents, public/charter/private schools
• Who benefits: Families gain option to use federal funds for private school tuition if state law allows; private schools could receive federal money for first time
• Who loses: Traditional public schools could lose Title I funding if students transfer; no more federal accountability requirements for how schools perform
• Teen impact score: 8/10 (direct impact on school funding, choice, and academic standards)
• Teen-specific impact: Changes which schools low-income teens can attend with federal support and eliminates federal testing/standards requirements that currently shape classroom instruction

What This Bill Does

• Per-pupil formula: Each state divides total Title I allocation by number of eligible children (ages 5-17 below poverty line) to calculate per-student amount
• Poverty measurement: Uses Census Bureau poverty criteria updated by Consumer Price Index
• Qualified expenses: Funds can pay for local school district budgets, charter school costs, public school tuition/fees in-state, private school tuition at accredited/state-approved schools, or state-approved supplemental education programs
• Parent payment option: States can distribute funds directly to parents (state determines verification method and whether educational savings accounts required)
• Federal ban: No federal employee can mandate instructional content, academic standards, curricula, Common Core, multi-state standards, or aligned assessments through grants/contracts
• Assessment prohibition: Federal government cannot require states/schools to implement annual tests, academic standards, or accountability systems, or condition funding on such implementation
• Repeals Part B of Title I (State Assessment Grants program)

Legislative Status

• Introduced January 3, 2025 by Rep. Biggs (R-AZ)
• Referred to House Committee on Education and Workforce
• No further action yet

In short

• Converts Title I (federal aid for low-income students) from school grants to per-student funding that can follow children to private schools if states allow.
• Bans federal government from requiring Common Core, standardized testing, or any academic standards across multiple states.
• States control how funds distribute and whether parents receive money directly.
• Only affects students from families below poverty line (not all students).
• Currently just introduced—no votes or committee hearings scheduled.

Why should I care?

If enacted, this bill fundamentally changes how federal funding supports low-income students' education. For teens in families below the poverty line, it could mean more school options—including private schools previously unaffordable—if their state opts in. But it also removes federal testing and accountability requirements, meaning no standardized way to measure if schools are actually helping students learn. Traditional public schools might lose money when students leave, potentially affecting class sizes, programs, and resources for teens who stay. The ban on Common Core and federal standards shifts control entirely to states, so academic expectations could vary widely depending on where someone lives. For college-bound teens, inconsistent standards across states could complicate admissions and scholarships.