WASHINGTON—Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to sign into law the newly passed HB 1, which expands the state’s Family Empowerment Scholarships to all K-12 students.

Lindsey Burke, director of the Center for Education Policy at The Heritage Foundation, and Jason Bedrick, a research fellow also in the Center for Education Policy, made the following statement:

“Florida has long been a pioneer in empowering families with education choice. And the state is living up to its first-place status in Heritage’s inaugural Education Freedom Report Card.

“Gov. Ron DeSantis and legislative leaders like House Speaker Paul Renner as well as Senate President Kathleen Passidomo deserve great credit for advancing policies that put students and families first.

“By expanding the state’s innovative education savings account policy to all K-12 students, Florida continues to lead the nation in education freedom by ensuring parents are empowered to make the best decisions for their child’s education.”

BACKGROUND: Florida is already home to the nation’s largest private school scholarship program and the largest education savings account program based on student participation. With an education savings account, or ESA, families have the freedom and flexibility to customize their child’s education. Families may use ESA funds to pay for private school tuition, tutoring, textbooks, homeschool curriculum, online learning, special needs therapy, and more.

Florida was the second state after Arizona to enact an ESA policy. This new law’s expansion to all K-12 students in Florida responds to the remarkable demand parents have shown for choices in education. Learn more here.