Omnibus voucher bill could be poised for fast track this week
PSBA has learned that a voucher proposal is being drafted and could be introduced and run in the Senate Education Committee very soon with little prior notice. The bill is called “The Excellence in Education for All Act.” While the language of the bill is not yet available, the co-sponsorship memo states that the key components of the bill include:
- Education Opportunity Accounts for the most vulnerable students
- Expansion of the existing EITC/OSTC tax credit scholarship programs
- Charter school reforms and innovations
- Equal access to the best public education, regardless of ZIP code
- Protections for coronavirus learning pods
This omnibus proposal seems to be one more attempt to undermine public education and publicly subsidize private education. This is particularly appalling at a time when public schools are working so hard during these challenging times to provide the needed instructional programs and services to every one of their students. The pandemic has revealed and reinforced the value of our public schools. Now is time for the General Assembly to focus its attention on supporting public schools.
PSBA will keep you updated on this proposal. We are providing this information now and asking you to be prepared to take action soon. Be on the lookout for an upcoming Legislative Alert.
In the meantime, we urge you to check out the information and resources on the Voucher Issue page on PSBA’s website.