summary
Introduced
01/14/2025
01/14/2025
In Committee
02/06/2025
02/06/2025
Crossed Over
02/04/2025
02/04/2025
Passed
05/01/2025
05/01/2025
Dead
Signed/Enacted/Adopted
05/12/2025
05/12/2025
Introduced Session
126th General Assembly
Bill Summary
Amend The South Carolina Code Of Laws By Amending Section 59-8-110, Relating To Definitions Concerning The Education Scholarship Trust Fund, So As To Revise Definitions; By Amending Section 59-8-115, Relating To Scholarship Application Criteria And Procedures, So As Provide Requirements Concerning Priority And General Applications, To Provide Certain Exemption Acknowledgement Requirements For Nonpublic Education Service Providers, Among Other Things; By Amending Section 59-8-120, Relating To The Establishment Of The South Carolina Education Scholarship Trust Fund, So As To Recharacterize Its Corpus And Revise Its Usages, To Establish A Trustee Appointment For The Fund And To Provide The Qualifications And Duties Of The Trustee, And To Establish Scholarship Allocation Amounts And Accountability Measures; By Amending Section 59-8-125, Relating To Scholarship Fund Payments, So As To Provide For The Role Of The Trustee In Making Such Payments, To Provide For Trustee Payments, And To Provide Terms For A Contractual Relationship For The Performance Of The Trustee's Duties, Among Other Things; By Amending Section 59-8-130, Relating To Scholarship Eligibility Termination Notice Requirements, So As To Restate The Section; By Amending Section 59-8-135, Relating To Scholarship Participant Number Limitations, So As To Revise The Limitations, Enable Increases, And Remove A Periodic Program Eligibility And Use Review Requirement; By Amending Section 59-8-140, Relating To Education Service Provider Program Participation Requirements, So As To Include Eligible Schools, And To Remove Certain Administrative Requirements Of The State Department Of Education; By Amending Section 58-8-145, Relating To Miscellaneous Department Administrative Requirements, So As To Remove A Provision Allowing The Department To Contract With Qualified Organizations For Related Assistance; By Adding Section 59-8-147 So As To Provide The Department Shall Post Certain Information About The Program On Its Internet Website, To Provide Requirements Of The Department Concerning The Application Process, And To Provide A Grace Period For Applicants To Correct Minor Errors; By Amending Section 59-8-150, Relating To Education Service Provider Requirements, So As To Expand Employee Criminal Background Checks, To Revise Employee Surety Bond Requirements, To Revise Assessment Requirements, And To Remove A Provision Authorizing The Department To Promulgate Related Regulations, Among Other Things; By Amending Section 59-8-160, Relating To The Education Scholarship Trust Fund Review Panel, So As To Restate The Section; By Amending Section 59-8-165, Relating To District-level Student Transfer Policies, So As To Replace The Existing Language With Provisions Concerning Interdistrict Transfers; By Amending Section 59-8-170, Relating To An Exemption From High School League Transfer Eligibility Rules For Interdistrict Transfer Scholarship Students, So As To Make The Provision Applicable To Scholarship And Nonscholarship Students, And To Provide Subsequent Transfers Are Subject To High School League Eligibility Rules; And By Amending Section 59-150-350, Relating To Scholarships Designated To Receive Lottery Funding, So As To Include The South Carolina Education Scholarship Trust Fund. - Ratified Title
AI Summary
This bill amends the South Carolina Education Scholarship Trust Fund (ESTF) program to expand and refine its operations. The bill defines and updates key terms, establishes a phased expansion of student participation from 5,000 students in 2024-2025 to at least 15,000 students by 2026-2027, and introduces progressive household income eligibility thresholds. The legislation creates an application process with priority windows for current participants, military families, and students with lower household incomes. It establishes a new trustee role to manage the fund, specifies qualifying expenses that can be paid from scholarship accounts (including tuition, educational materials, technology, therapies, and transportation), and requires educational providers to meet certain standards, including background checks and financial accountability. The bill mandates annual assessment of student progress, creates an ESTF Review Panel to advise the department, and ensures transparency through reporting requirements. Importantly, the bill maintains the program's focus on providing educational choice by allowing parents to use funds for various educational services while implementing safeguards to prevent misuse of scholarship funds. The program aims to provide more educational options for students, particularly those from lower-income households, by allowing them to access alternative educational services beyond their assigned public school.
Committee Categories
Education
Sponsors (3)
Last Action
Act No. 11 (on 05/12/2025)
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