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Nebraska lawmakers are considering a bill aiming to increase the literacy skills of the state's elementary school kids.

While the state has historically had higher reading scores than most of the nation, the figures are starting to slide, particularly following the pandemic. In 2024, more than 70 percent of the state's fourth graders were reading at or below a basic level, according to assessments from the National Center for Education Statistics.

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Senator David Murman, R-Glenvil, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, said Legislative Bill 1050 would allow the state Department of Education to recommend a child not reading proficiently in third grade be held back a year.

"Up until third grade, the typical student is learning to read, and then beyond third grade, the student is reading to learn," Murman explained. "If the student is not proficient in reading by third grade, it will be difficult for them to catch up or even be proficient in all subjects beyond third grade."

The bill would give parents the final say as to whether the child advances to fourth grade.

Murman noted Nebraska lawmakers are modeling their legislation after a 2013 bill in Mississippi, known as the "Mississippi Miracle," which improved the state's historically low reading scores.

"Since 2013, Mississippi has improved more than any other state. There have been several other states that have done similar things to what Mississippi has done. Right now, about half of the states in the country have some type of third grade retention policy."

The measure currently awaits action in a review committee.