2025 bills / S.B. 137
S.B. 137 Course Choice Empowerment (2025)
- Introduced
- Senate committee
- Senate vote
- House committee
- House vote
- Signed into law
What this bill does
This bill creates an online course program for private school students, run by an independent program manager under contract with the State Board of Education. Under the program, eligible students could earn credits through online courses, including blended-learning courses, and the manager would approve course providers and courses, set course payments, and report yearly on results.
Plain-English summary written by AI from the official description. Check the official text below.
Official description
- establishes standards for educational software and hardware procurement
- removes references to a contractor from the Statewide Online Education Program statute
- creates an online course choice program specifically for private school students
- requires the program be administered by an independent program manager contracted by the State Board of Education
- allows eligible students to earn credits through online courses, including courses in blended-learning environments
- establishes a contract administrator role to oversee program implementation
- authorizes the state board to contract with multiple entities for different program functions
- provides for state oversight while maintaining program independence
- creates transition provisions if program manager contracts end
- requires separate funding from public education programs
- requires the program manager to:
- approve and oversee course providers
- approve and oversee courses offered
- establish payment structure for courses
- annually report on program performance
- makes technical changes
Your legislators on this bill
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Take action
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Follow S.B. 137
Members ($5 a month) get:
- An alert the day S.B. 137 is put on a committee agenda, with time and room, so you can be there to speak
- When S.B. 137 is rewritten, exactly which words changed
- Its hearings in your own calendar
- Your own scorecard: pick the side you favor and see how every legislator voted
Or start free: A weekly email when S.B. 137 moves: hearings, votes, rewrites, signed or vetoed.
Every vote
- 5 yes, 1 no, 1 absentSenate Education Committee: vote to approve it · Jan 30, 2025Who voted how
- 12 yes, 13 no, 4 absentSenate vote, which failed · Feb 18, 2025Who voted how
- 23 yes, 2 no, 4 absentFirst of two Senate votes · Feb 27, 2025Who voted how
- 23 yes, 3 no, 3 absentFinal Senate vote · Feb 28, 2025Who voted how
- 12 yes, 0 no, 4 absentHouse Education Committee: Amendment Recommendation · Mar 4, 2025Who voted how
- 8 yes, 4 no, 4 absentHouse Education Committee: vote to approve it · Mar 4, 2025Who voted how
- 46 yes, 23 no, 6 absentFinal House vote · Mar 7, 2025Who voted how
- 22 yes, 4 no, 3 absentSenate vote to accept the other chamber's changes · Mar 7, 2025Who voted how
Hearings and debates
- Jan 30, 2025 Senate Education Committee▶ Watch
- Mar 4, 2025 House Education Committee▶ Watch
- 18/2/2025 Senate floor debate▶ Watch
- 27/2/2025 Senate floor debate▶ Watch
- 28/2/2025 Senate floor debate▶ Watch
- Jul 3, 2025 House floor debate▶ Watch
- Jul 3, 2025 House floor debate▶ Watch
- Jul 3, 2025 Senate floor debate▶ Watch