Stop Defunding Missouri Public Schools

The Missouri Legislature is pushing a number of bills that make it easier for parents to send kids to non-district schools and take money from Missouri's public schools, which are already struggling for funding. These bills reinforce redlining and worsen education inequality. HB1485 (Christ), HB1764 (Hicks), HB1941 (Toalson Reisch), HB2178 (Richey), BH2088 (O’Donnell), SB1006 (Eigel), SB920 (Koenig), and SB1123 (Brown) would allow charter schools in more places. Charter schools pull thousands of students and associated state/local tax dollars away from Missouri's public schools and help lead to situations where public schools are underfunded and closing. These charter schools have no accountability or oversight and don't answer to elected school boards like public schools do. Over half of the charters in Missouri have already closed, at which point students must go back to public schools that may no longer exist. SB 1051 (Trent) and HB 1989 (Pollitt) would allow students to transfer to other public school districts without becoming residents, at the discretion of the school board. This defunds Missouri's public schools and pits them against each other. It also allows for discrimination and favoritism over which students are accepted. It discriminates against students with disabilities as they don't include students in specialized schools for disabilities to transfer into neighboring non-accommodating public schools. Transportation isn't provided, which further limits accessibility as not all parents or students have the means to provide private transportation. Many proposed bills expand the existing MOScholars program, which provides private (often religious) school scholarships that are funded by donations eligible for tax credits. SB727 (Koenig) allows families with higher incomes to participate. SB 1118 (Coleman), HB 1671 (Matthiesen), HB 1615 (Hudson), HB 1738 (Richey), and HB 2104 (Christofanelli) expand it so more students qualify. SB 729 (Koenig) and HB 1911 (Richey) directly defund public schools by providing parents with a tax credit for not sending their child to public school. All of these bills funnel tax money away from public schools and into private schools, which are often run by religious institutions. History tells us the dangers that come from unregulated private religious schools, from the horrors of the Indian Boarding Schools to the recent abuse at Agape. Missouri has a long history of valuing quality education. Black Missourians in St. Louis docked a steamboat in the middle of the Mississippi river to create the Floating Freedom School and secure their education in the mid-1800s. German immigrants to Missouri in the 1800s made kindergarten a national standard. Unfortunately, we've gone backwards in recent years and now rank at the bottom of the nation in education due to misguided bills like these. I urge you to oppose all these bills and fully fund and support public schools and teachers to provide a free quality education to all of Missouri's children, allowing them to learn, grow, and thrive.