State Board of Education Unanimously Approves Rules Despite Homeschool Concerns

On Thursday, the State Board of Education unanimously approved new rules governing Educational Freedom Account spending on athletics despite concerns voiced by homeschoolers.

Lawmakers created the EFA program in 2023, making it possible for Arkansas students to use public funds to pay for an education at a public or private school or at home. Thousands of students have taken advantage of school choice in Arkansas under this program since then.

The newest proposed rules from the Department of Education would prohibit EFA spending on team sports that require tryouts or that limit participation based on ability. That means that a homeschool student who wants to play basketball for a local school could not pay for athletic expenses with EFA money even though public schools pay for team sports with state money.

Arkansas law clearly caps spending in these areas at 25% of a student’s total EFA funding, which means no more than one-fourth of a student’s EFA money can go toward team sports and extracurricular activities. The new rules go farther by prohibiting all spending on team sports that require tryouts.

The rules also limit EFA balances. Previously, EFA funds could roll over each year up to a maximum balance of $20,000. However, the proposed rules now set this limit at $8,500 or a lesser amount set by the Arkansas legislature in a future session.

The proposed rules also set up a new framework differentiating between “core educational expenses” versus “qualifying expenses.”

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that the Department of Education received more than 200 comments from members of the public regarding the new EFA rules and quotes parents who are concerned the rules discriminate against homeschoolers.

Family Council and our homeschool division, the Education Alliance, submitted comments last week expressing our concerns that the proposed rules are more restrictive than the state laws the Arkansas Legislature has passed.

Now that the State Board has ratified the rules, they will go to members of the Arkansas Legislature for final review.

You can read Family Council’s comments on the proposed rules here.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.