Missouri's House passed a controversial bill, HB 711, enabling up to 3% of students to transfer to nonresident districts. As the Senate considers similar measures, debate intensifies over local control and potential impacts on rural communities.

The Missouri House has passed a bill creating an open-enrollment program for the state’s public schools. The House voted 88-69 to pass the legislation. The legislation creates an opt-in program where schools can choose to accept students who live outside their district.

A bill that would make Missouri an open enrollment state has reached the halfway point in the state legislature. By a vote of 88-69, the state House of Representatives has passed legislation that would let K-12 public schools decide for themselves if they want students from neighboring districts to enroll in their district.

The legislation creates an opt-in program where Missouri public schools can choose to accept students who live outside their district. It now goes to the Missouri Senate, where similar bills have died in prior sessions.

Roughly 43 states allow open enrollment in public schools and some state lawmakers want Missouri to be the next. The state House of Representatives has given initial approval to a bill that would let K-12 public schools decide if they want students from neighboring districts to enroll in their district.