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LEGISLATION AND LITIGATION National The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments April 19 in Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Comer, a case arising out of Missouri that could remove a major impediment to educational choice found in many state constitutions. So-called “Blaine Amendments” have restrictive language about state funds being used by religious institutions, […]
Best 1. Nevada enacted two educational choice programs. We predicted in 2014 that Nevada would be the state “most likely to succeed” in becoming a new school choice state in 2015. We were right, but Nevada’s success far exceeded our expectations. The state passed not one, but two educational choice programs. It became the 26th […]
Alabama – Leslie Hiner @LeslieHiner The Alabama Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Alabama Accountability Act on March 2. Alabama’s tax-credit scholarship and refundable tax credit programs, which serve low-income children with a preference for children in “failing” schools, are currently undergoing revisions through SB 71, which passed the Senate March 31. Although SB […]
Arizona – Leslie Hiner @LeslieHiner The Arizona Senate passed, with a bipartisan vote, the expansion of education savings accounts (ESAs) to include Native American families living on tribal lands. Florida – Leslie Hiner @LeslieHiner A bill to clarify and revise technical aspects of the Florida Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts, an ESA program, was introduced in […]
Florida – Stephanie Linn @StephanieJLinn The Florida Education Association (FEA) filed a lawsuit challenging a newly enacted law that includes an education savings account (ESA) for students with special needs—called the Personal Learning Scholarship Account—along with an expansion of the existing Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program. The FEA contends the law violates a state constitutional […]
Alabama – Stephanie Linn @StephanieJLinn A trial court ruled that the school choice programs contained within the Alabama Accountability Act may continue while the state Supreme Court reviews a ruling striking down the Act. The office of the Attorney General and attorneys from the Institute for Justice filed a motion requesting a stay after Judge Gene […]
Alabama – Stephanie Linn @StephanieJLinn The Montgomery County Circuit Court struck down the Alabama Accountability Act as unconstitutional. The Accountability Act contains two private school choice programs: a tax-credit scholarship program and a refundable tax credit program. Judge Gene Reese ruled the Act violates the Alabama Constitution’s single-subject rule, which requires legislation to focus on […]
Alabama – Stephanie Linn @StephanieJLinn Alabama will likely hit the $25 million cap for corporate and individual donations for the new tax-credit scholarship program. As of December 20, Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs) have received $23.8 million in actual or indicated donations. If the cap is reached, SGOs could give out scholarships worth $8,800 to around 2,700 […]
Alabama – Stephanie Linn @StephanieJLinn Last spring the Alabama legislature passed two new school choice programs in the Alabama Accountability Act (AAA): a tax-credit scholarship program for low-income families and a tax credit or rebate for any family that transfers their child from a failing public school to a private school. The Alabama Education Association subsequently […]