Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Congressman French Hill (AR-02) released the following statement criticizing the decision by Democratic leadership to strip a popular, bipartisan provision from H.R. 1994, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, that would allow the use of 529 savings plans for home schooling and special needs expenses:

“Stripping money away from families needing help to pay for home schooling and students with learning disabilities will leave countless Arkansas families out in the cold. As a father, I know how expensive it can be to pay for additional educational resources for a child. It is wildly disingenuous to discriminate against families who have children with special needs or choose home schooling for their children’s education.

“Despite the 529 provision passing 42-0 out of the Ways and Means Committee, Democratic leaders allowed special interest groups to rewrite this bill to limit educational resources that will hurt the 20,331 students in Arkansas who are home schooled. I voted in favor of the SECURE Act because it has sound bipartisan policy ideas. However, Congress should be expanding educational opportunities for families, not making partisan, backroom deals that undermine the ability for parents to do what is best for their children.”