Kansas lawmakers approved an increase in funding for public schools, tying the extra money to allowing parents to send their children to any school with room for them. The measure passed by the Legislature on Thursday goes next to the Governor, and would boost direct state funding to local school districts by about 6%.
The votes were 24-14 in the Senate and 75-45 in the House. Supporters argued that the "open enrollment" provisions in the bill would give parents more options while using competition to push schools to improve. Opponents argued that some schools would be hurt as funding followed students.
