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H 8130Education

Education - Rhode Island Prekindergarten Education Act

Makes the state Pre-K program permanent, creates a centralized lottery for admission, and allows out-of-district enrollment starting in 2026.

Held for study
Population
Affected
15
Email Legislator
Introduced Feb 27, 2026Committee House Education

Plain-English Summary

This legislation transitions the Rhode Island Prekindergarten Program from a pilot phase to a permanent state program for children ages three and four. It removes the restriction that limited the program to communities with low-performing schools. The bill establishes a centralized lottery system to manage enrollment, prioritizing siblings and balancing economic demographics. Additionally, starting July 1, 2026, the bill allows families to enroll their children in participating prekindergarten programs outside of their home municipality if there are open slots available, ensuring that funding follows the student without penalizing the program.

For younger readers

This new law changes how the state's school program for young children (ages 3 and 4) works. It makes the program a permanent part of the school system instead of just a test. Because there are not enough seats for everyone, the state will use a lottery—like picking names out of a hat—to decide who gets in. It also says that starting in the summer of 2026, if a school in a different town has empty seats, kids can go to school there even if they don't live in that town.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Parents of young childrenChildren ages 3 and 4Early childhood educatorsSchool administratorsMunicipal governments
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Expands access to early childhood education by removing the requirement that programs only exist in communities with concentrations of low-performing schools, potentially universalizing access.
  • Promotes equity by designing the lottery system to specifically consider the economic demographics of the municipality, ensuring disadvantaged students are not left behind.
  • Allows for inter-district enrollment, which enables families in lower-income areas to access high-quality educational resources in other communities if their local programs are full.
  • The reliance on a lottery system implies that universal coverage is not guaranteed, meaning many low-income families may still be denied access to early education due to a lack of slots.
  • Opening enrollment to non-residents without a massive infusion of new funding could dilute resources in successful public programs, potentially overcrowding them.
  • There is an inconsistency in the text where the program serves ages 3 and 4, but the lottery eligibility is specified for 4-year-olds, potentially leaving 3-year-olds without a clear path to entry.
For Conservatives
  • Introduces school choice principles by allowing parents to enroll their children in programs outside their municipality, breaking the monopoly of zip-code-based education.
  • Promotes efficiency by utilizing "open slots" in existing programs, ensuring that taxpayer-funded resources are not sitting empty/unused.
  • Protects family units by prioritizing the enrollment of siblings, respecting the logistical needs of families over bureaucratic assignment.
  • Expands the size and scope of government by converting a "pilot" program into a permanent state mandate, likely leading to increased long-term taxpayer costs.
  • Centralizes control by granting the state department of education the authority to run a lottery and promulgate rules, reducing local municipal control over admissions.
  • Allows non-residents to utilize local facilities, which may upset residents who pay local property taxes to support those specific community resources.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 54 additions · 13 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 16-87-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-87 entitled "Rhode Island Prekindergarten Education Act" is hereby amended to read as follows: 16-87-3. Planning phase for a prekindergarten program Rhode Island prekindergarten program.

(a) The Rhode Island department of elementary and secondary education ("the department") shall begin planning an initial, pilot maintain a prekindergarten program that meets high quality standards, builds on the existing early childhood education infrastructure in the state (including child care, Head Start and public schools) and serves children ages three (3) and four (4) who reside in communities with concentrations of low performing schools. This planning phase will develop specific goals to expand the pilot prekindergarten program over time and will also identify opportunities to strengthen care and learning programs for infants and toddlers years.

(b) During this planning phase, Annually, the Rhode Island department of elementary and secondary education will shall quantify the resources needed to achieve and maintain high quality standards in prekindergarten programs and identify incentives and supports to develop a qualified early education workforce, including opportunities for experienced early childhood educators and paraprofessionals to acquire college degrees and earn early childhood teacher certification.

(c) The Rhode Island Annually, the department of elementary and secondary education will begin to develop plans to shall collect and analyze data regarding the impact of the pilot state prekindergarten program on participating children’s school readiness and school achievement.

(d) The department shall conduct a lottery to determine enrollment in the state prekindergarten program, pursuant to § 16-87-3.1.

SECTION 2. Chapter 16-87 of the General Laws entitled "Rhode Island Prekindergarten Education Act" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following sections: 16-87-3.1. Lottery for the Rhode Island prekindergarten program.

(a) As used in this section and § 16-87-3.2, the following words shall have the following meanings:

(1) "Participating in the state prekindergarten program" means a municipality that receives funding from the state to create or maintain slots in a classroom for three (3) or four (4) year-olds.

(2) "Preferred program" means a program(s) selected by the family of a potential prekindergarten student when applying to enter the prekindergarten lottery. Families shall not be permitted to identify their preferred program(s) from a list of prekindergarten programs operating in any municipality participating in the state prekindergarten program.

(3) "Siblings" means students who are related by blood, marriage, or co-residence of their parents.

(4) "Students who are economically disadvantaged" means students who qualify for free or reduced lunch.

(b) To be eligible for the lottery, a student shall be:

(1) A resident of a community participating in the state prekindergarten program; and

(2) Four (4) years of age by September 1 of the lottery year.

(c) The prekindergarten lottery shall be conducted to consider the following:

(1) A family’s preferred program;

(2) Siblings that are already enrolled in a particular prekindergarten program; and

(3) The economic demographics of the municipality in which the prekindergarten program operates.

(d) The Rhode Island department of elementary and secondary education shall promulgate rules and regulations regarding the operation of the lottery for state-funded prekindergarten seats pursuant to this section. 16-87-3.2. Enrollment at Rhode Island prekindergarten programs.

(a) Effective July 1, 2026, any prekindergarten program (a "program") located in any municipality participating in the state prekindergarten program may accept students into their program who are not residents of the municipality in which the program operates; provided that, all of the following conditions are present:

(1) The program has open slots available;

(2) The student is otherwise eligible for the prekindergarten program; and

(3) The student is selected by the prekindergarten lottery.

(b) The acceptance of students into a program who are not residents of the municipality in which the program operates shall not, in and of itself, cause a loss or reduction in state or local education aid to the program.

(c) No student shall be excluded from a prekindergarten program who has a sibling enrolled in that prekindergarten program based on the fact that the student lives in a different municipality.

(d) The Rhode Island department of elementary and secondary education shall promulgate rules and regulations regarding the enrollment at state-funded prekindergarten seats pursuant to this section.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.