ESEA Outlook Murky, Despite House Panel's Vote

The future of Republican-backed legislation to renew the Elementary and Secondary Education Act remains cloudy—even after the House education committee gave a pair of measures its seal of approval last week.

The two bills, both introduced by U.S. Rep. John Kline, R-Minn., the chairman of the committee, would give states much more running room in K-12 policy, a 180-degree pivot from the current version of the law, the decade-old No Child Left Behind Act. The measures, dealing with accountability and teacher-quality issues, passed Feb. 28 on a party-line vote of 23-16.

But some Republicans would like to see the bills go even further, gutting the U.S. Department of Education. And getting Democratic support for the measures—which would ultimately have to be signed by President Barack Obama—is a tall order. Democrats made it clear during committee debate that they think the bills are a step...