Don't divert public education dollars into private schooling

In 2025, Idaho legislators will almost certainly try again to divert our public education taxes into private schooling. It will be called “vouchers,” “education accounts,” or some such thing. 

They will do this public school resource stripping in the name of parent choice, and it will paradoxically reduce the future choices and opportunities of large swaths of Idahoans, mostly in rural districts. Kids' communities want and need future emerging adults who are competent in all the ways that allow them to contribute and to thrive. Not just the few whose parents shepherd them through private education. 

The Idaho Constitution says, “It shall be the duty of the legislature of Idaho to establish and maintain a general, uniform and thorough system of public, free common schools.” In the November election, Nebraska, Colorado, and Kentucky joined previous jurisdictions to repeal such unpopular public school resource stripping.

Let's head this thing off to prevent taxpayer-funded legal defenses and a future statewide ballot measure to reverse it. We can speak up by attending our legislators' town halls, and by writing, calling their offices, or emailing them. They can be reached at legislature.idaho.gov/legislators/contactlegislators.

CHRISTINE MOON

Sandpoint