Kindergarten bill moves forward

A state House of Representatives subcommittee passed legislation Monday afternoon that would change when children can enroll in kindergarten.

House Bill 100 initially would have required children to be 5 on or before Aug. 1 to enroll at the start of the 2015-16 school year. A number of parents and groups objected to the bill, saying, in part, that it didn’t give parents enough time to make arrangements if their children didn’t meet the new age requirement.

Rep. Tom Dickson, the legislation’s sponsor, introduced a substitute bill Monday that would delay making the legislation state law until the start of the 2017-18 school year. The latest version of the bill would require children to be 5 on or before July 1 to enroll in kindergarten at the start of the 2018-19 school year. Dickson, a Republican from Cohutta, said he moved the start date to the 2017-18 school year to help children who have been enrolled in pre-kindergarten programs for the 2016-17 school year.