Two Measures Filed to Restrict Homeschoolers Under EFA Program

Home School, , ,

Last week, two bad resolutions authorizing introduction of non-budget measures were filed at the Arkansas Legislature.

The General Assembly convened on Wednesday for its 2026 budget session, and lawmakers are currently reviewing appropriations for the coming fiscal year. During the budget session, legislators can file non-appropriation measures, but those measures cannot be brought up for consideration without a two-thirds vote of the Arkansas House and Senate.

Two identical non-appropriation measures — H.R. 1008 and S.R. 16 — have been filed to restrict homeschoolers participating in the Educational Freedom Account (EFA) program.

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, and many homeschool families have benefited from it.

H.R. 1008 and S.R. 16 would significantly reduce EFA funding for homeschoolers and implement mandatory assessment scores for students participating in the EFA program.

It’s worth pointing out that lawmakers have rejected homeschool testing legislation in the past.

The State of Arkansas used to require homeschoolers to take a state-mandated test. In 2009, Arkansas’ homeschoolers performed better on the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills than 61% – 80% of the students who took that test, nationwide.

According to the 2013-2014 Home School Report from the Arkansas Department of Education, in 2014 homeschoolers in grades 3 – 9 scored anywhere from the 51st percentile to the 65th percentile on that same test.

In fact, homeschoolers in Arkansas performed so well on standardized tests that the Arkansas Legislature finally ended state-mandated homeschool testing in 2015.

H.R. 1008 and S.R. 16 cannot be brought up for consideration without a two-thirds vote of the Arkansas House and Arkansas Senate, and there does not seem to be much interest in these measures among lawmakers at this time.

Family Council and its homeschool division, the Education Alliance, plan to continue monitoring this legislation at the Capitol.

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

READ MORE

From Homeschool Rules to Abortion Drugs in Court, Here’s a Look Back at the Week’s Top Stories

Current Events,
This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is weekly-rewind-banner-corrected-1024x165.png

Here’s a quick recap of the week’s top stories from Family Council and our friends:

From Family Council

📃 Family Council, Education Alliance Ask Arkansas Board of Education to Rethink EFA Restrictions on Team Sports: On Monday, Family Council and its homeschool division, the Education Alliance, submitted public comments expressing concerns over new rules governing Educational Freedom Account spending on athletics. Keep Reading.

⚖️ Family Council Joins Brief Defending States’ Authority to Protect Life: The State of Missouri has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the FDA’s mail-order abortion drug protocols. Last week, Family Council joined an amicus brief led by Advancing American Freedom in that lawsuit. Keep Reading.

💉 Latest Oregon Report Shows Sobering Statistics on Assisted Suicide: The state’s 2025 reports show that a record 637 lethal prescriptions for assisted suicide were written last year. Keep Reading.

❔ Is Transgender Ideology “In Retreat”? Pollsters at Gallup have found most Americans now say it is “morally wrong” to change genders. Most believe that drivers’ licenses should list biological sex instead of gender identity. And most do not think men should compete against women in women’s sports. Keep Reading.

🥼 American Medical Association Says It Still Supports Sex-Change Procedures for Children: In February, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons announced it now recommends delaying sex-rejecting surgeries for children until at least age 19, and at the time many media outlets reported that the American Medical Association also believed these procedures were inappropriate for kids. But in its March newsletter, the AMA board clarified that those media reports were wrong. Its policy on sex-change surgeries actually has not changed. Keep Reading.

📜 U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Colorado’s “Conversion Therapy” Ban: In an 8-1 opinion delivered last Tuesday, the Court held that Colorado’s law against so-called “conversion therapy” violates the First Amendment. Keep Reading.

💬 This Supreme Court Ruling Has Major Implications for Free Speech: In a video interview with Family Research Council’s Tony Perkins, ADF senior counsel Jake Warner said, “Colorado has been no respecter of the First Amendment. ADF has litigated multiple cases, including up to the U.S. Supreme Court against the state of Colorado in its effort to censor ideas that it disagrees with.” Keep Reading.

⚖️ These Two U.S. Supreme Court Cases Could Affect Arkansas Law: Between now and the end of June, the U.S. Supreme Court will issue decisions in two court cases that could affect whether states like Arkansas are free to preserve fairness in women’s athletic programs. Keep Reading.

From Our Friends

How HRC’s Corporate “Equality” Index Harms Children. From Breakpoint.

Medicalizing Gender Confusion Makes Things Worse, New Research Confirms. From DailyCitizen.

Judge Doesn’t Stop Mail-Order Abortions, Lets FDA Finish Safety Review. From LifeNews.

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

READ MORE

These Two U.S. Supreme Court Cases Could Affect Arkansas Law

Transgender, ,

Between now and the end of June, the U.S. Supreme Court will issue decisions in two court cases that could affect whether states like Arkansas are free to preserve fairness in women’s athletic programs.

Over the past ten years, female swimmers, powerlifters, cyclists, sprinters, volleyball players, and many others have seen their sports radically changed by men who claim to be women. In some sports, it can even be dangerous.

That’s why many states have enacted good laws clarifying that biological males who identify as female cannot compete in women’s athletic programs. Unfortunately, some of those laws have been challenged in court.

In 2020, Idaho passed the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act preventing male student-athletes from competing against girls in women’s athletics at school. The following year, West Virginia passed the Save Women’s Sports Act, which is very similar to Idaho’s law. The ACLU challenged both laws, and both lawsuits have been appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The case concerning Idaho’s law is Little v. Hecox. In West Virginia, the case is West Virginia v. B.P.J.

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in both cases on January 13 of this year, and the Court could issue final decisions in the cases sometime between now and June 26.

The Supreme Court’s decision in these cases could affect laws protecting fairness in women’s sports nationwide — including Arkansas.

In 2021, Arkansas passed Act 461 by Sen. Missy Irvin (R — Mountain View) and Rep. Sonia Barker (R — Smackover) preventing male student-athletes from competing against girls in women’s athletics at school. Family Council was pleased to support Act 461 at the state legislature.

Act 461 has not been challenged in court — meaning the law is in full effect, protecting fairness in women’s sports in Arkansas.

However, the U.S. Supreme Court’s decisions in Little v. Hecox and West Virginia v. B.P.J. could affect Act 461 and laws like it across the country. That’s why Family Council joined dozens of state policy organizations and more than 200 state legislators in an amicus brief in the Idaho case last September. The amicus brief highlights the opportunities that women’s athletics offer to students, and it urges the Supreme Court to uphold the law and protect women’s sports.

Most Americans agree that athletes should compete according to their biological sex — not their gender identity. We believe the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately will uphold fairness in women’s sports in Idaho, West Virginia, and the rest of the country.

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

READ MORE