James Dawson 01/21/25
Idaho’s largest teachers’ union, as well as associations representing school administrators and elected school boards, joined to oppose subsidizing private school tuition with tax dollars Monday.
Those include the Idaho Education Association, the Idaho Association of School Administrators and the Idaho School Boards Association.
The groups and their supporters gathered in a legislative hearing room at the Idaho Capitol, urging lawmakers to oppose any form of tuition subsidy, whether it’s in the form of a tax credit, school voucher or education savings account.
Gov. Brad Little set aside $50 million for the issue in his proposed budget, with several lawmakers floating different ideas of how to use that money.
However, Little said such a bill must prioritize low-income families, must have some form of accountability and cannot take money away from public schools.
In the current fiscal year, Idaho is spending nearly $2.7 billion from its general fund on K-12 public education.
“Why are we creating a new system if we don’t think we can control the system we currently have?” said former Rep. Julie Yamamoto.
Yamamoto helped block past tuition subsidy efforts while chairing the House Education Committee and subsequently lost her Republican Party primary election last year.
She said if passed, programs like a tax credit or education savings account would eventually grow so large that they would explode in overall cost.
Arizona launched a universal school voucher program in 2022, which is estimated to cost $429 million in fiscal year 2025.
Others at the rally, like Pleasant Valley School District Superintendent Heather Williams, said any subsidy plan would only benefit families in more populous areas where private schools largely operate.
“We’re asking rural taxpayers to subsidize their urban counterparts. This path makes no sense to me and makes Idaho a prime target for another school funding lawsuit,” Williams said.
In 2005, the Idaho Supreme Court ruled lawmakers weren’t upholding their constitutional obligation to adequately fund public schools but didn’t impose any corrective action.
Accountability, one of Little’s sticking points, has seemingly been one of the main sticking points in negotiations, with supporters of these programs arguing the ultimate accountability lies with the parents – not on test scores.
Senate Majority Leader Lori Den Hartog (R-Meridian) and Rep. Wendy Horman (R-Idaho Falls) have yet to introduce a proposed tax credit, though Horman previewed it the first day of the legislature earlier this month.
Horman said it would prioritize families earning less than 300% of the federal poverty level, or $93,600 annually for a family of four.
It’s unclear how much money parents could earn under the tax credit plan, though the pair’s bill last year allocated $5,000 per student.
Public education supporters said they expect the legislation to be introduced later this week.
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