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January 6, 2006
What's next for Florida vouchers?That is the multi-million dollar question now that the Florida Supreme Court has ruled the state's original, flagship school voucher program unconstitutional. As we noted yesterday, two strategies under discussion are to alter the program and make it more like Florida's tax-credit voucher program (though that too may now face a legal challenge), or to amend the state constitution and get voters to agree to make vouchers legal. The state legislature returns for business in March, so stay tuned.
The day-after coverage is thorough. The Miami Herald pulls no punches in its report of Thursday's decision: "In a stunning blow to the education policies that Jeb Bush has made the centerpiece of his governorship, the Florida Supreme Court struck down the state's tuition voucher program Thursday, saying it violates the state Constitution because it diverts public money to private schools. Although the 5-2 ruling applies only to one of three voucher programs now in existence, it could place all such Florida programs in legal jeopardy." The governor said he would press ahead to find a way to preserve the program, the paper reported.
NSBA and Florida School Boards Association comments are in this Associated Press article (by way of the L.A. Times).
Palm Beach Post roundup is here. And their editorial here.
The New York Times reports that the decision could impact future rulings:
Joseph P. Viteritti, a professor at Hunter College who has written widely on voucher programs, called the Florida ruling important because many state constitutions have provisions similar to Florida's, requiring that public education be "uniform.""It signals a direction that litigation may go in the future, offering a strategy for people who may want to strike voucher programs down," he said.
Under the headline "Good riddance", the Orlando Sentinel editorializes that it is time for Florida politicians to move past vouchers, noting the much greater popularity (based on enrollment) of public school choice in Florida as opposed to the "Opportunity Scholarship" voucher program.
Similarly, the St. Petersburg Times editorial page urges lawmakers to stop the voucher fight. "More to the educational point, though, lawmakers need to reflect on the slippery nature of their voucher experiments. None of the newest voucher programs is tied to the performance of corresponding public schools, and no one knows whether the voucher schools are delivering a better education because they are not tested or held to any equivalent standards. This legal fight needs to end so the state can turn its focus once again to making sure that every public school is, as the Constitution promises, 'high quality.'"
Posted January 6, 2006 3:36 PM | Privatization & Choice
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