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The COMPASS Act shields military families who homeschool from being penalized under a new state's education laws when a permanent change of station uproots them mid-year.
OUR POSITIONMilitary families who choose to homeschool their children face a distinctive burden that civilian families never encounter: when a servicemember receives permanent change of station orders, the entire household must move, often with little notice, to a state whose compulsory education and homeschooling laws may differ substantially from those they have been faithfully following. The COMPASS Act addresses this directly. Under the new Section 708 it would add to the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, a homeschooled dependent child moving under those orders would be considered in full compliance with the destination state's education laws so long as the child is complying with either that state's requirements or the requirements of the servicemember's state of legal residence.
This protection is carefully bounded. It applies only to children who are actually being educated at home and who are actually subject to active permanent change of station orders. Families not in that situation are not affected, and the bill does not override any state's standards in any broader sense. The American Council regards this precision as a mark of responsible drafting: the relief goes exactly where the hardship exists and no further.
For families of faith who have chosen homeschooling as an expression of their convictions about education and family, a forced interruption or threatened legal jeopardy because of a military move is not a minor inconvenience. It places conscience-driven educational choices in conflict with a servicemember's duty to country. The COMPASS Act refuses to force that conflict. We believe no family should have to choose between honoring their commitment to serve and honoring their commitment to their children's education.
The American Council urges every member of Congress to vote yes on HB9351. The COMPASS Act is a modest, targeted, and overdue recognition that the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act should fully cover the educational lives of military children, not only the financial and legal affairs of their parents. We ask constituents across the country to contact their representatives and senators now and make clear that this bill deserves swift passage.
HB9351 was introduced in the House on June 18, 2026, referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs the same day, and subsequently assigned to the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity on July 6, 2026. The bill currently sits in subcommittee, which is where the majority of House bills remain without advancing, as no hearing or markup has been scheduled based on available records. The 119th Congress is operating under standard two-year session timing, meaning the legislative clock will reset if the bill does not advance before the session ends. Constituent contact carries the most weight right now, while the bill is in subcommittee and before any hearing has been scheduled, as subcommittee members and the full Veterans' Affairs Committee chair have the most direct influence over whether the bill receives a hearing or markup.