What do you get when you combine an exploding universal voucher program with declining state tax revenues?
We’re about to find out in Ohio just as Arizonans found out recently when an out-of-control voucher expansion blew up their state budget.
The universal voucher program in Ohio is unique because there is no cap on spending.
Anyone who applies for a private school voucher, even millionaires and billionaires, receives at least a partial refund and rebate for tuition.
The rules for reporting family income are very loose. High school vouchers are worth $8,407 per student and K-8 are worth $6,165 per student.
As of March, there were more than 91,000 applications for private school vouchers for the 2023-24 school year, up from 24,323 in the 2022-23 school year, and the deadline for applying is June 30.
The vast majority of the students taking vouchers were already enrolled in private schools.
At the same time the voucher program is exploding, the state’s tax collections have come in under projections for four of the last five months.
According to the Toledo Blade, Ohio’s tax collections have not been in the black since November.
Unlike the federal government, Ohio lawmakers and our governor must balance the budget.
The state has collected $446.7 million less in taxes than projected at the same time vouchers are going to cost the state as much as $1 billion.
In Arizona, Gov. Katie Hobbs had a practical idea to rein in the skyrocketing costs of the private school voucher program that was busting the state’s budget. Gov. Hobbs proposed requiring students to attend public school for 100 days before becoming eligible for a voucher.
Do you think that idea has a chance in Ohio to curb spending?
The money for vouchers comes from the same line-item in the budget that pays for public schools so a dollar more for vouchers is a dollar less available for public schools.
When it comes time to balance the budget in June, what will lawmakers do?
This is why we are suing the state, challenging the constitutionality of the private school voucher program.
Is your district part of the lawsuit? Check here.
If not, why not? Learn how to join here.
Sincerely,
Vouchers Hurt Ohio