Connecticut Senate approves bill introducing new regulations on homeschooling families

HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — With a nearly party-line vote, the Connecticut State Senate gave final approval to a bill introducing new regulations on homeschooling families.

Twenty-two Democrats voted in favor, with three others joining the entire 11-member Republican caucus in opposition.

The bill that was put before senators for debate is a modified version of one that was first introduced in March, drawing a sizable protest of homeschooling families who viewed the attempt at new regulations as an afront to their autonomy.

The original legislation would have required homeschooling parents to annually provide proof that their curriculum aligned with a general set of state-mandated topics. It also included a provision requiring that parents seeking to remove their child from the public school system first be subjected to a background check of sorts in which school officials would consult the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to see if anyone in the child’s household had a history of abuse.

The legislation was introduced amidst a string of alarming headlines documenting cases of alleged child abuse and, in two cases, the deaths of children who had been removed from the public school system.

The Democrats backing the bill have pointed to these cases as illustrating the need for reform. They have also repeatedly cited a 2018 report compiled by the state’s Office of the Child Advocate which surveyed six school districts and found “that over a span of three academic years, 2013 through 2016, there were 380 students withdrawn from the six districts to be homeschooled, and that 138 of these children (36%) lived in families that were the subject of at least one prior accepted report to DCF for suspected abuse or neglect.”

Republicans largely sided with the sentiments of the homeschooling parents, who felt they were being unfairly scapegoated. They also questioned the effectiveness of the measures introduced by Democrats, arguing some of them, like the requirement to provide proof of instruction, were burdensome, while not directly addressing the issue of abuse.

In the weeks following the public hearing, Democratic leadership in the House also registered discontent with certain sections among their own ranks.

The fierce Republican opposition, paired with scattered Democratic dissent, caused House leadership to remove the curriculum portion while maintaining a DCF check before removal from public schools and a requirement that homeschooling parents annually register themselves online.

A spokesperson for Gov. Ned Lamont said Monday that the governor is likely to sign the legislation.