Lawmakers to vote on voucher bill tomorrow
After tomorrow, we'll find out whether or not parents whose kids attend public school will be able to use taxpayer dollars to send them to any school of their choice.
The Pennsylvania Constitution and other state and federal laws clearly prohibit the transfer of state funding through vouchers to private and religious schools as proposed in Senate Bill 1.
SB 1 does nothing to support real reforms such as replacing weak school administrators, improving teacher quality and training, strengthening the curriculum, providing extra academic and behavior supports, and installing up-to-date computer technology, science labs, and libraries.
The bill exempts the new State Voucher Board from laws for public scrutiny and review of proposed regulations, and fails to state whether the Board is subject to sunshine laws for open meetings and open records. The bill also does not require private and religious schools to provide any information to the state or to the public about financial, academic, and other aspects of their operations.