---
title: 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
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb918
cite_as: HB 918, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb918
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb918.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb918/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72021
date: 2026-01-12
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 129
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb918.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 918
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-04-02
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
- Scott Hilton
- Todd Jones
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB918/2025
upstream_id: 2019471
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- public education
- home schooling
- private schools
- school enrollment
- education funding
---
# 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
## Text
House Bill 918
By: Representatives Hilton of the 48th and Jones of the 25th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Part 13 of Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to organization of schools and systems under the "Quality Basic
Education Act," so as to 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, subject
only to enrolling school capacity and academic and grade level prerequisites; to provide for
schools enrolling such students to receive state funds; to prohibit tuition; to provide for
policies, rules, and regulations; to provide for definitions; to provide for related matters; to
repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Part 13 of Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to organization of schools and systems under the "Quality Basic Education Act," is
amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"20-2-297.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Home study student' means a student in a home study program which meets the
requirements of subsection (c) of Code Section 20-2-690.
(2) 'Parent' means a parent, legal guardian, custodian, or other person with legal authority
to act on behalf of a student.
(3) 'Part-time student' means a student enrolling in a public school on a less than full time
basis.
(4) 'Private school student' means a student in a private school which meets the
requirements of subsection (b) of Code Section 20-2-690.
(5) 'Resident school' means the school in which a student is or would be enrolled based
on his or her residence.
(b) A parent of a home study student or a private school student shall be permitted to
enroll such student in any public school in this state on a part-time basis to attend academic
courses offered by such public school.
(c) A student enrolled in a public school in this state shall be permitted to enroll in any
other public school in this state on a part-time basis to access courses and other academic
and school based services and programs currently unavailable to such student at his or her
resident school.
(d)(1) A local school system shall earn state funds for each home study student, private
school student, or nonresident public school student enrolled in one or more courses
pursuant to this Code section. Such funds shall be earned in accordance with Code
Section 20-2-160 for any one-sixth segment of the day or its block scheduling equivalent
that each such part-time student attends, or in accordance with State Board of Education
guidelines established for such purpose.
(2) A local board of education shall not charge part-time students enrolled as provided
for in this Code section.
(e) Each local board of education shall adopt such policies, rules, and regulations
necessary to implement and consistent with the purpose and intent of this Code section.
The only enrollment criteria that may be applied to restrict the enrollment of part-time
students as provided for in this Code section shall be academic or grade level prerequisites
and enrollment capacity at the enrolling school."
SECTION 2.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.
## Summaries written by Georgia Commons
The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.
A Georgia House bill would let private school students, home-schooled students, and public school students from other schools enroll part time in any public school in the state, mainly to take specific courses.
### Plain-language summary
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.
### What it does
- 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.
### Who it affects
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.
### Why it matters
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.
### Key provisions
- 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.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2025-04-02)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2026-01-12)
- Sponsors: Scott Hilton, Todd Jones
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72021
> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb918.md?full=1