---
title: HB 971. Quality Basic Education Act; home study students and private school students to enroll in college and career academies located in certain RESA service areas and adjacent local school systems; provide
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb971
cite_as: HB 971, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb971
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb971.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb971/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72220
date: 2026-03-31
status: engrossed
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: 795
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb971.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 971
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-02-24
last_action: Senate Tabled
sponsors:
- Rick Townsend
- Todd Jones
- Buddy DeLoach
- Lynn Smith
- Mitchell Horner
- Angie O'Steen
- Mike Hodges
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB971/2025
upstream_id: 2080488
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- home study students
- private school students
- college and career academies
- career and technical education
- school enrollment rules
---
# HB 971. Quality Basic Education Act; home study students and private school students to enroll in college and career academies located in certain RESA service areas and adjacent local school systems; provide
## Text
House Bill 971
By: Representatives Townsend of the 179th, Jones of the 25th, DeLoach of the 167th, Smith
of the 70th, Horner of the 3rd, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Part 14 of Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to other education programs under the "Quality Basic Education Act,"
so as to provide for home study students and private school students to enroll in college and
career academies located in certain RESA service areas and adjacent local school systems;
to revise what courses are available to such students; to revise a definition; to provide for an
effective date and applicability; 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 14 of Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to other education programs under the "Quality Basic Education Act," is amended
by revising Code Section 20-2-319.5, relating to enrolling home study and private school
students in college and career courses, as follows:
"20-2-319.5.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'College and career academy' has the same meaning as set forth in Code Section
20-4-37.
(2) 'Course' means a an eligible CTAE course, as such term is set forth in Code Section
20-2-161.3, offered by a college and career academy to public school students enrolled
in such college and career academy.
(3) 'Home study student' means a student in a home study program which meets the
requirements of subsection (c) of Code Section 20-2-690.
(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 system' means the local school system in which a home study
student or a private school student would be enrolled by virtue of his or her residence.
(b) Local school systems are authorized to enroll home study students and private school
students in one or more courses at a college and career academy which is geographically
located within the student's resident school system, the same regional educational service
agency (RESA) service area as the student's residence, or a local school system that is
adjacent to the student's resident school system irrespective of whether such adjacent local
school system is in the same RESA service area as the student's residence, so long as space
is available in such course or courses.
(c) The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules and regulations to effectuate the
provisions of this Code section, which may include, but not limited to:
(1) Forms for use by local school systems to enroll a home study student or a private
school student;
(2) Timelines for enrolling and withdrawing from a course;
(3) Procedures for reporting academic progress and grades to the student's parent or
guardian and the student's home study program or private school;
(4) Procedures for handling disciplinary issues that arise relating to home study students
and private school students while attending the courses;
(5) Procedures for reporting disciplinary issues to the student's parent or guardian; and
(6) Any other procedures or requirements deemed necessary by the state board.
(d) Home study students and private school students enrolled in courses in college and
career academies pursuant to this Code section shall meet all of the same requirements for
enrollment and participation in a course; shall be subject to all rules, including the school's
code of conduct; and shall be subject to any fees for a course which are applicable to the
public school students enrolled in the college and career academy.
(e) Home study students and private school students shall be responsible for transportation
to and from the college and career academy.
(f) A local board of education shall earn FTE funds for each home study student and
private school student enrolled in one or more courses pursuant to this Code section at a
college and career academy that has a charter with such local board of education. 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 student attends in a manner
similar to nonresident students, or in accordance with State Board of Education guidelines
established for such purpose. A local board of education shall not charge home study
students or private school students tuition to enroll in a course pursuant to this Code
section."
SECTION 2.
This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2026, and shall apply to all school years beginning
with the 2026-2027 school year.
SECTION 3.
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 home study and private school students take courses at college and career academies located anywhere in their region, not just inside their home school district.
### Plain-language summary
Under current Georgia law, home study students and private school students can only enroll in college and career academy courses if the academy sits inside their resident school system. HB971 expands that geographic reach so students can also enroll in a college and career academy located anywhere within the same regional educational service agency (RESA) service area as their residence, or in a local school system adjacent to their resident district, even if that adjacent district is in a different RESA area.
The bill also narrows what counts as a qualifying 'course' under this law, limiting it to eligible career, technical, and agricultural education (CTAE) courses as defined in another section of Georgia code, rather than any course offered by the academy. All existing rules on fees, transportation responsibility, discipline, and funding for local school boards stay the same. The changes would take effect July 1, 2026, starting with the 2026-2027 school year.
### What it does
- Expands where home study and private school students can enroll in college and career academy courses to include academies anywhere in the same RESA service area as their home, not just their own school district.
- Allows enrollment at academies in adjacent local school systems even when that adjacent system is in a different RESA service area.
- Narrows the definition of qualifying 'course' to eligible CTAE (career, technical, and agricultural education) courses as defined in O.C.G.A. § 20-2-161.3, rather than any course an academy offers.
- Keeps in place existing rules requiring available space, no tuition charges, student responsibility for transportation, and compliance with the academy's code of conduct.
- Sets the changes to take effect July 1, 2026, applying starting with the 2026-2027 school year.
### Who it affects
Home study students and private school students across Georgia, their families, local school systems and boards of education, college and career academies, and regional educational service agencies (RESAs) that would need to coordinate enrollment across district lines.
### Why it matters
Students who live near a college and career academy just outside their home district, or anywhere in their broader region, would gain access to career and technical courses they previously could not take. Local school boards would still earn funding for these students but must coordinate enrollment across a wider geographic area.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. § 20-2-319.5 to expand eligible academy locations to the same RESA service area or an adjacent local school system, in addition to the student's own resident school system.
- Section 1 redefines 'course' to mean only eligible CTAE courses as defined in O.C.G.A. § 20-2-161.3, narrowing what qualifies compared to current law.
- Section 1 retains the requirement that space be available and that local boards may not charge home study or private school students tuition for these courses.
- Section 1 keeps funding rules unchanged: local boards earn FTE (full-time equivalent) funds for enrolled students under O.C.G.A. § 20-2-160 in the same manner as nonresident students.
- Section 2 sets the effective date as July 1, 2026, applying beginning with the 2026-2027 school year.
- Section 3 repeals conflicting laws.
## Status
- Status: Engrossed (2026-02-24)
- Last action: Senate Tabled (2026-03-31)
- Sponsors: Rick Townsend, Todd Jones, Buddy DeLoach, Lynn Smith, Mitchell Horner, Angie O'Steen, Mike Hodges
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72220
> The history, votes, and amendments (795 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb971.md?full=1