Tell Your State Lawmakers to Oppose a New Universal Voucher Proposal

Time Range For Action Alert:

July 12, 2024 to August 30, 2024

We need your immediate help to send a message to PA lawmakers to oppose Senate Bill 1280, a universal school voucher bill that would provide a $8,000 cash handout to families for every student in the commonwealth who is not enrolled in a public school.

You can find your legislator's contact information by CLICKING HERE.

In the midst of no movement on their constitutional obligation to fund public education in compliance with the 2023 Commonwealth Court decision, the Pennsylvania Senate Finance Committee passed Senate Bill 1280, a universal school voucher bill, that would drain billions of dollars out of the state budget.

Senate Bill 1280 would send approximately $2.3 billion in cash handouts to families in the first year of the program by providing a $8000 tax credit--deposited in a bank account-- for each child who is currently enrolled in a private or religious school or is homeschooled and for new students who would choose to enroll in private schools. And the cost of this program would grow in future years as additional families opt to take advantage of this cash payment.

There are no limits on the amount of funding that could be spent on this program. There is no cap on the number of students who will receive the funding. There are no income limits for families who can participate. There is no requirement that students attend low-performing public schools. And there is nothing to prevent families from double dipping with EITC and OSTC school vouchers, meaning that a family could have their private school tuition covered by EITC and OSTC vouchers and receive this tax credit for other “qualified educational expenses” under Senate Bill 1280.

And the lack of accountability in Senate Bill 1280 is truly staggering. There is no proposed mechanism to ensure that cash given to families would be spent on the “qualified learning expenses” enumerated in the bill.

Pennsylvania ALREADY spends $470 million on vouchers for discriminatory private and religious schools. Not one additional tax dollar should be gifted to any school voucher program in the 2024-2025 state budget.

With a budget that is already overdue, Pennsylvanians deserve better than this. It is time for Senate leadership to get serious. They need finish the job and fund our public schools in compliance with the Commonwealth Court order.

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