Oppose S 292 & HR 817 - Support Public School funding for ALL STUDENTS!

As a constituent, I strongly urge you to oppose the Educational Choice for Children Act (S. 292/H.R. 817) and its costly voucher-inspired scheme. According to press releases issued by the bill’s lead sponsors in both chambers, the scheme would cost the U.S. Treasury $10 billion a year—$100 billion over a 10-year period. In return for donations to scholarship-granting organizations (SGOs) that pay for private and religious schools, individuals and corporations would get dollar-for-dollar tax credits worth far more than the usual deduction for charitable contributions. People could also offload stocks to SGOs and evade taxes on capital gains. Not only is the scheme unfair, it ignores the overwhelming majority of our students: 90% of American students attend public school. Vouchers don’t work in the rural communities where public schools are the economic center. Nor do they improve student performance. Moreover, special needs students who attend private schools lose important legal rights and protections. America cannot afford to fund two education systems—one private and one public. Taxpayer dollars should go to public schools open to all students, not private schools that can pick and choose their students. That’s why voters all across America have rejected voucher schemes every time they’re on the ballot—17 times. Please oppose this bill and any other efforts to distort the tax code with voucher-inspired schemes.