The General Assembly recently passed legislation to prepare Tennessee for significant changes to the United States Department of Education (ED). House Bill 958, sponsored by State Rep. William Slater, R-Gallatin, will create a seven-member task force to ensure Tennessee can effectively respond to any potential deregulation or dismantling of the ED at the federal level.
This legislation will help identify federal K-12 education funding, federal requirements for receiving funds, state resources needed to receive funds and the number of positions paid by federal dollars. It will also consider whether programs or resources provided by federal funds should continue.
The task force will be required to submit policy recommendations to the General Assembly by Dec. 31, 2025. It will be composed of the House and Senate Education Committee chairs, two state representatives, two state senators and a teacher appointed by the governor…