Georgia House Bill HB546

Georgia 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/20/25

Caption

Quality Basic Education Act; require local school systems to offer certain exams to home study students

Summary

House Bill 546 amends Georgia’s Quality Basic Education Act to require local school systems that already offer certain standardized tests or advanced placement exams to enrolled students to also make those same exams available to eligible home study students. The covered exams include the PSAT/NMSQT, SAT, PreACT, ACT, ASVAB, and AP exams. The bill defines a “home study student” as a student in grades 6 through 12 enrolled in a home study program that meets existing state requirements. The bill also requires school systems to post notice of each covered test or exam on their public website, including test dates, registration deadlines and procedures, and a statement that home study students may participate if they reside in the district. It further prohibits school systems from charging home study students any fee not charged to enrolled students or imposing additional requirements that conflict with or go beyond current home study law. In effect, the bill expands access to district-offered testing for homeschool students while standardizing notice and participation rules.

Impact

HB546 would add a new Code section to Title 20 governing school testing access and would directly affect local school systems that administer the listed exams. It would require those systems to open participation to qualifying home study students living in the district, subject to the same rules and procedures as enrolled students, and to provide public notice of availability and registration details. The bill would also limit districts’ ability to impose extra fees or conditions on homeschool participants, thereby creating a statewide baseline for access to these exams under the Quality Basic Education Act.

Sentiment

The available record shows no committee transcript, recorded vote, or formal opposition, so there is no documented debate to indicate strong support or resistance. Based on the bill’s text and caption, the measure appears policy-focused and administrative in nature, aimed at improving access for home study students rather than changing broader education policy. The absence of recorded controversy suggests the bill was presented as a straightforward access and notice requirement.

Contention

The main potential point of contention is between local school systems and home study families over access, logistics, and cost. School districts may be concerned about administrative burden, scheduling, testing capacity, and whether they can recover costs associated with administering exams to non-enrolled students. Home study advocates, by contrast, would likely support the bill’s prohibition on extra fees and additional requirements, viewing it as necessary to ensure equal access to college- and career-readiness testing. Another possible issue is the bill’s requirement that districts offer exams either on the same date/time or another date/time selected by the district, which preserves local discretion but may still create implementation challenges.