Georgia Senate Votes to Nullify Common Core

A bill that would nullify Common Core standards passed the Georgia Senate on Tuesday.

SB167 titled “The Act to Restore Educational Authority to Georgia Citizens” would enact measures to prevent the outsourcing of educational power from local communities to unaccountable federal bureaucrats.it would also withdraw the state from following Common Core standards.

a) Beginning on the effective date of this Code section, the State of Georgia shall retain sole control over the development and revision of the content standards established pursuant to Code Section 20-2-140 and no content standards shall be adopted or implemented except in accordance with the procedures required by Code Section 20-2-140 provided, however, that such required procedures shall not apply to courses developed and submitted by local boards of education for approval by the state board. On and after the effective date of this Code section, the state shall not adopt any federally prescribed content standards or any national content standards established by a consortium of states or a third party, including, but not limited to, the Next Generation Science Standards, the National Curriculum for Social Studies, the National Health Education Standards, or the National Sexuality Standards.

(b) No official of the State of Georgia, whether elected or appointed or representing the state in any capacity, shall join, on behalf of the state or a state agency, any consortium, association, or entity or enter into a binding agreement, when such membership or agreement would relinquish any measure of control over standards and assessments, to any individual or entity outside the state.

The measure passed the Senate 34-16.

The bill moved quickly after it was introduced on Feb. 19 by Sen. William Ligon Jr., along with five cosponsors.

While touted as a state initiative, the federal government is deeply involved in both the formulation and implementation of Common Core. Federal Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan positioned Common Core as a “once in a life time opportunity for the federal government to create incentives for far-reaching improvement in our nation’s schools.”

Constitutionally, the federal government should not be involved in education at all.

Common Core’s proponents deceptively claim that the curriculum is not the handiwork of federal bureaucrats because it was conceived by the National Governors Association (NGA) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). However, they were only put in charge of Common Core because it is illegal and unconstitutional for the Dept. of Education to issue a copyright. In fact, the NGA has received tens of millions in taxpayer cash from the federal government over the course of many years.

Common Core gives the feds the power to collect all kinds of data from children including Social Security numbers, blood type, records of school attendance, supposed learning disabilities, religious affiliation, disciplinary records and parents’ income information. The curriculum also eschews classic literature in favor of drab government technical manuals. Common Core implementation is already causing test scores to plummet in places that have yet to take action against it.

SB167 promotes decentralized government and takes control from unaccountable federal bureaucrats and puts it back into the hands of the people.

The bill will now move to the Georgia House for consideration.

ACTION ITEMS
For GA Residents: Take steps to support SB167 by clicking HERE.
For Other States: Check out our Tracking and Action Center to see if your state has introduced legislation against Common Core by clicking HERE.

This article first appeared on Tenth Amendment Center.