Narrowed Hope Scholarship Bill Clears House Finance Committee

The House Finance Committee advanced a Hope Scholarship Bill Thursday, but it’s markedly different from what was proposed last week.

Advocates of the state’s school voucher program were alarmed last Wednesday when House Finance originated a bill that would place various financial limits on the Hope Scholarship program.

The program provides financial assistance to qualifying families of K-12 students to be used for tuition, homeschool curriculum and other approved educational expenses.

The amount awarded to each student currently increases annually with the state school aid formula, but the legislation proposed on Wednesday would separate the award from the formula and cap it at its current amount of $5,250 dollars per child per year. The projected scholarship amount for the 2026-2027 school year under the existing statutory language is $5,435.62.

The bill would also significantly restrict how the money can be spent and block the Hope Scholarship board from approving other qualified expenses beyond what is already in statute. 

The bill discussed by lawmakers Thursday morning bore little resemblance to that bill, maintaining only an adjusted schedule for the distribution of Hope funds to families from twice a year to four times a year.

Democrats on the committee like Del. Sean Hornbuckle, D-Cabell, tried to introduce amendments placing income and spending limits on the program.

They were struck down for not being germane to the bill’s new, limited scope on payment timelines, but Hornbuckle warned of the need for fiscal responsibility to ensure the future of school choice amidst ballooning costs.

“We are at a place in our state where we are hemorrhaging money and the public education system is falling because of it,” he said. “Again, this is a good piece of legislation. It does something, but if we’re not going to be serious about guardrails to add fiscal responsibility to this program… in its current posture of the scholarship program, again, I believe it’s just highly irresponsible, and we need to do some due diligence to rein that in.”

Currently students must be enrolled in public school for at least 45 days to be approved for the Hope Scholarship. The award is set to expand its eligibility to every school-aged child in West Virginia this fall, regardless of enrollment status, with an expected cost of $230 million that is being reflected in the current budget bill. The program received a total of $120 million in appropriations from the state legislature this year and is expected to more than double its participation over last year. 

Del. John Williams, D-Monongalia, introduced an amendment to create an income limit of five times the state average or about $300,000. He said the state should not be subsidizing the private education of millionaires.

“We have public schools, and if you are of means to that extent and you don’t like it, you can pay for it, but we still retain the ability for folks to have school choice who don’t make that much every year,” he said.

The as-yet-unnumbered bill advanced to the full House of Delegates for consideration.

Even before the bill was presented to delegates, State Treasurer and Hope Scholarship Board Chairman Larry Pack released a statement thanking committee chairman Del. Vernon Criss, R-Wood, for the changes to the bill.

“We understand the need to thoroughly examine all government initiatives and look forward to having future conversations with the leadership of both Houses on this program,” Pack said. “The Hope Scholarship has had a tremendous impact on thousands of students in West Virginia. We want to ensure the longevity of the program for years to come.”

Pack expressed his disappointment and concern at the proposition of the previous, broader originating bill before the committee last week.

He finished his statement Thursday by saying the focus would now be on implementing universal eligibility which starts next week.