Nebraska ballot measure would make private schools ineligible for voucher program

CNA Staff, Sep 6, 2024 / 09:00 am

A ballot measure to repeal a new school choice scholarship voucher program is set to be on the November 2024 ballot in Nebraska.

The school choice program provides scholarships to students to attend qualifying private schools, including parochial schools, with a high priority for students in foster care, students experiencing bullying or harassment, and students in need of special education as well as low-income and lower-middle-class families. 

Students may apply for and receive scholarships to private schools through Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs).

Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen confirmed on Friday that there were enough verified signatures to include the repeal measure on the ballot. However, the Elections Division has not yet certified the petition.

The “Private Education Scholarship partial referendum” had more than 60,000 valid signatures, meeting the 5% distribution requirement in at least 57 counties. The petition has enough valid signatures to be certified, but the state will continue to verify signatures until it reaches the 110% threshold, according to a press release from Evnen’s office. 

Gov. Jim Pillen signed LB 1402 into law earlier this year. It is set to provide $10 million annually in state funding for scholarships for students to attend private schools.

“Not every school is a perfect fit for a kid, no matter if they attend a public or private school,” Pillen said in an Aug. 30 statement. “That is why I have supported and continue to support the need to bring options to our students and their families. It has taken Nebraska a long time to get here, and we need to expand on those opportunities so it is even easier for families to make those decisions.”

LB 1402 is designed to help parents of limited means, the bill says. 

“Parents and legal guardians of limited means are less able to choose among quality educational opportunities for their children,” LB 1402 reads. 

“Enabling the greatest number of parents and legal guardians to choose among quality educational opportunities for children will improve the quality of education available to all children,” it continues. 

LB 1402 is a less expensive version of last year’s measure, LB 753, which opponents initially collected signatures to overturn. LB 753, the Opportunity Scholarships Act, offered a tax credit to those who donate to SGOs. In April, legislators repealed the Opportunity Scholarships Act, and with the passage of LB 1402 instead set aside $10 million in state funding for scholarships. 

Support Our Schools Nebraska, which organized last year’s signature collection, has since been collecting signatures for a ballot measure against the most recent school choice bill. 

Opponents of the school choice programs criticized the measure saying it doesn’t help all children and takes away funding from public schools. 

“Vouchers undermine strong public education and student opportunity. They take scarce funding from public schools — which serve 90% of students — and give it to private schools — institutions that are not accountable to taxpayers,” said Jenni Benson, a sponsor of Support Our Schools, in a statement. “Instead of sending public dollars to private schools, which are under no obligation to serve all children, state funds should be used to support the public schools that 9 out of 10 Nebraska students attend.”

Sen. Dave Murman, a proponent of school choice, said the LB 1402 program is “amongst the humblest and most meager in the nation” compared with most school choice programs.

“Others have argued LB 1402 defunds public schools. Those who make this claim either haven’t done the math or simply know they are lying,” he said in a statement. “In the 2022-2023 year, K–12 schools received about $4.7 billion in taxpayer funds. Since my time as chair of the Education Committee, we have additionally appropriated over $1.6 billion for our public schools. Compare this spending with the $10 million cost of LB 1402, and we see that it is only about 0.2%, or two one-thousandths, of our total education funding.” 

All ballot measures must be certified by Sept. 13, according to the secretary of state.