Pennsylvania House

  • Ten bills were referred to the House Education Committee. One bill, HB 1904, sponsored by Rep. Joseph D’Orsie, (R) York County, would affect the homeschool community.  He attended our convention last year.
  • HB 1904 is entitled “Student Freedom Account Act”
    • The first provision of the bill appears to be Section 1327.4, which is the current law.
    • The establishment of an ESA (Education Savings Account) in which tax payer funds would be placed into a student account which could include homeschooling students.
    • CHAP does not support or oppose legislation on ESAs and encourages families to express their individual opinions to their legislators. When expressing concerns, remember that oversight and regulation by the state legislature is an expected and necessary part of any public spending.

Pennsylvania Senate

  • Six bills were referred to the Senate Education Committee. These have no direct impact on the homeschool community.

Issues of Interest

  • Currently, the PA House is evenly divided between Republican and Democrat. On February 13, a special election will be held in the 140th legislative district, composed of Falls Township and Levittown.  It is an overwhelmingly Democratic district.
  • We continue to appreciate the fine work of Will Estrada from HSLDA.

Brad serves as the Vice President of the CHAP Board; he is also chairman of our Legislation Committee. He is a practicing attorney for 33 years and is an adjunct faculty member at Cairn University. Brad reads all proposed legislation that comes before the education committees in Harrisburg to determine the impact on homeschooling families in Pennsylvania. Brad strives to encourage and protect Christian homeschooling families in our Commonwealth.