Gov. Lee called for a special session for his proposed school choice program, a disaster relief package for those affected by Hurricane Helene, and prepare the state for President Trump’s new immigration policies.

The Tennessee House voted to provide school vouchers to families in all 95 Tennessee counties. It passed in both chambers but not exactly on party lines.

So far, after Monday’s start, the Senate has passed an immigration bill and a disaster relief bill that would help victims of Hurricane Helene in Tennessee. These bills will still have to be passed by the House in order to head to Lee’s desk for signing.

Tennessee lawmakers have approved legislation drastically expanding the number of families who can use taxpayer money on private schools regardless of income.

Gov. Bill Lee surprised many when he inserted an “illegal immigration agenda” into his proclamation for a special legislative session that will focus primarily on a controversial private school voucher proposal and disaster relief for counties struggling to recover from Hurricane Helene.

Lee spoke following Thursday's events of the special legislative session. President Donald Trump began his White House briefing Thursday with a moment of silence and a prayer for victims of Wednesday's crash at Reagan National Airport.

The new Education Freedom Scholarship program will offer 20,000 scholarships of about $7,300 to Tennessee students to attend a school of their choice.

Tennessee House and Senate education committees passed the governor’s private-school voucher program Tuesday, speeding the $450 million first-year expense to final votes before week’s end. Senators voted 8-1 to send the measure to the finance committee to be considered Wednesday.

Both the Senate and House of Representatives have passed Gov. Bill Lee’s statewide expansion of school vouchers, otherwise known as the “Tennessee Education Freedom Act of 2025.”