Bill would forbid K-12 schools to hold student records based on non-payment

Rep. Matt Simpson, R-Daphne, sits at his desk on the floor of the Alabama House of Representatives on April 18, 2024 at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. Simpson pre-files bill prohibiting holding of records due tuition non-payment. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector)

An Alabama lawmaker has filed a bill that would prohibit K-12 schools from not transferring student records based on unpaid balances.

HB 56, sponsored by Rep. Matt Simpson, R-Daphne, would apply to transfers between private schools. Simpson wrote over text Monday that he is open to suggestions if someone wants to amend the bill.

“It just says these records, you can’t keep the records based on unpaid tuition,” he said in a phone interview. “If you need to get unpaid tuition, you have other ways to get that.”

Simpson said the bill came from a local school facing issues with their graduation rates because a private school will not release records to the public school.

“The theory behind the bill is that the student shouldn’t suffer over financials,” he wrote. “That’s out of their control.”