House Bill 2, a bill filed by State Rep. Suzanne Miles, R-Owensboro, has passed both the House and Senate and will ultimately lead to a constitutional amendment on the ballot for the 2024 election that would forever alter public education in Kentucky.
This bill is being touted as a “school choice” bill. However, House Republicans should remember the legitimate school choice bill they passed in 2021 with HB 563. In fact, Senator Max Wise, R-Bardstown, even mentioned on the Senate floor Friday that HB 563 created school choice options for families. That bill allowed for open enrollment among public school districts, allowing parents to move their child to a public school district other than that in which they live if the other district had room for them.
What House Bill 2 aims to do is alter the Kentucky Constitution to allow the legislature to provide public funding for private and charter schools while directly taking that money from public schools, a mission they have tried, and failed, to do twice before.
Parents have always had the option to send their child to a private school if they wish, but that comes with a cost. What legislators are conveniently omitting is that House Bill 2 would open the door for the legislature to move forward with their plan for school vouchers, thus further de-funding public education in Kentucky.
While the state legislature has proposed a minimal increase to SEEK funding for public schools over the next two years, it doesn’t come nearly close enough to meet the needs of our public school districts. This bill would only continue to take funds away from our most vulnerable populations.
Public schools must meet an ever-moving target of state accountability standards in order to receive the taxpayer dollars that they do. This includes annual testing, a minimum number of days school must be in session, and public transparency of spending. None of this applies to private or charter schools.
With the passage of this amendment, taxpayers should ask themselves what accountability there will be for private and charter schools. Private schools currently have no system of accountability to which they must adhere and Kentuckians should be concerned about the lack of oversight for where and how their tax dollars are spent.
This attempt to use taxpayer dollars to fund private education has been struck down not once, but twice by the Kentucky Supreme Court because it violates the Kentucky Constitution. This year, legislators are once again trying to circumvent this by misleading the public through a ballot amendment that will be worded so that many won’t understand what it is they are truly choosing.
Barring unforeseen circumstances, this amendment will be put on the ballot and it will be up to the school districts, school boards, and advocates for public education to inform voters on this issue. Should the amendment pass in the 2024 election, the consequences would be immeasurable. It would permanently alter the state constitution that has protected public education since 1792.
Do not be misled by clever public relations tactics. This bill is not a “school choice” bill. It is a bill that will allow the legislature to directly remove funding from public education and allocate it to private and charter schools across the Commonwealth. Once again, the fight is on to protect public education, an institution the founders of Kentucky felt strongly enough to cement into the state Constitution, and districts will need all public school supporters to inform voters in this upcoming election.
Submitted by
Anita Burnette
Interim Superintendent, Owensboro Public Schools
