The school voucher-style program provides public money for parents who unenroll a student from their school district and allow them to spend the funds on private school or other education-related expenses.
The House of Representatives narrowly approved Gov. Bill Lee's controversial school voucher legislation Tuesday, providing the administration its most significant victory since taking office in January.
The passage was not guaranteed and only happened after a 40-minute deadlock where the vote was stuck at 49-49, in part due to an absent lawmaker.
In a dramatic turn, Rep. Jason Zachary, switched his vote after House Republican leaders held behind-the-scenes negotiations in which the Knoxville Republican received assurances about additional changes to the bill.
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