HB 918: Quality Basic Education Act; permit private school students, home study students, and nonresident public school students to enroll as part-time students in any public school in this state

Currently, students who are home schooled or attend private school generally cannot take individual courses at a public school without full enrollment, and public school students are largely limited to courses offered at their own assigned (resident) school. This bill adds a new section to Georgia's Quality Basic Education Act allowing parents of home study and private school students to enroll their child part time in any public school to take academic courses. It also lets a public school student enroll part time in a different public school to access courses, services, or programs not available at their home school. Schools that take on these part-time students would earn state funding for them, calculated based on class periods attended, similar to how full-time funding works. Local school boards cannot charge tuition to these part-time students. The bill limits the reasons a school can turn away a part-time student to only two things: whether the student meets academic or grade-level prerequisites, and whether the school has room.

• Creates a new Code section (20-2-297) letting parents enroll home study or private school students part time in any Georgia public school to take courses.
• Allows public school students to enroll part time in a different public school to access courses or programs unavailable at their own resident school.
• Directs local school systems to receive state funding for each part-time student based on class periods attended, similar to existing per-segment funding rules.
• Bans local school boards from charging tuition to part-time students enrolled under this new provision.
• Limits schools to only two grounds for denying part-time enrollment: academic or grade-level prerequisites and available capacity.
• Requires local boards of education to adopt policies, rules, and regulations to carry out the new part-time enrollment option.

Home-schooled students and their parents, private school students and their parents, public school students seeking courses not offered at their assigned school, local school systems and boards of education, and the Georgia Department of Education, which would administer related funding guidelines.

Families who home school or send children to private school could gain access to public school classes without full enrollment or paying tuition, and public school students could take courses unavailable at their home school. Public schools would receive state money for these part-time students but would have to admit them unless space or prerequisites are lacking.

• Section 1 adds Code Section 20-2-297, defining 'home study student,' 'private school student,' 'part-time student,' 'parent,' and 'resident school.'
• Subsection (b) requires public schools to allow part-time enrollment for home study and private school students to take academic courses.
• Subsection (c) allows public school students to enroll part time at a different public school to access courses or services unavailable at their resident school.
• Subsection (d) requires local school systems to earn state funds for each part-time student based on class segments attended, per Code Section 20-2-160 or State Board of Education guidelines, and bars charging tuition to these students.
• Subsection (e) requires local boards to adopt implementing policies and limits allowable enrollment restrictions to academic/grade-level prerequisites and school capacity.
• Section 2 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2026-01-12House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-04-04House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-04-02House Hopper (House)

• Scott Hilton (R, HD-048)Primary sponsor
• Todd Jones (R, HD-025)

• public education
• home schooling
• private schools
• school enrollment
• education funding