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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Legislation that would give Tennessee parents the option to move a child from a failing public school to a private school is advancing in the Legislature.
The school voucher proposal sponsored by Republican Sen. Todd Gardenhire of Chattanooga was approved 8-1 in the Senate Education Committee Wednesday evening. The companion bill passed a House education subcommittee the day before.
The legislation is similar to a measure Republican Gov. Bill Haslam proposed last year that failed.
Under Gardenhire's proposal, eligibility would be opened to low-income students in districts that have a school in the bottom 5 percent.
Haslam's proposal was approved in the Senate last year, but the House version was unsuccessful because it sought to expand eligibility.
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