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HB 1258

Education - As introduced, requires local boards of education to notify the department of education when a board declares itself to be a high performing school district; requires the department to maintain a list of high performing school districts on the department's website. - Amends TCA Title 49.

114th Regular Session (2025-2026) Introduced by Monty Fritts

Tennessee bill requires school districts to self-report high-performing status to the state, which maintains and publicizes a list on its website.

Ref. to Education Committee
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Bill Summary · HB 1258

Legislative bill overview

HB 1258 requires Tennessee school districts that consider themselves "high performing" to notify the state Department of Education of this status. The department would then maintain and publish a list of these self-designated high performing districts on its website.

Why is this important

The bill creates a formal mechanism for recognizing school district performance and making that information publicly accessible. This could help parents and community members identify districts claiming strong academic outcomes, though the criteria for what constitutes "high performing" and how districts self-designate remains unclear in the bill's current form.

Potential points of contention

  • Lack of objective standards: The bill doesn't define what qualifies a district as "high performing" or establish criteria, potentially allowing subjective or misleading self-designation
  • Accountability concerns: Self-reporting without independent verification could undermine the credibility of the list and mislead families seeking quality schools
  • Administrative burden vs. benefit: Creates a state reporting requirement for what may be minimal public value, particularly if existing performance data is already available through other state metrics

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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