Latest news with #WyomingFreedomScholarshipAct
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wyoming Gov. Calls Universal School Voucher Bill a ‘Remarkable Achievement'
This article was originally published in WyoFile. Gov. Mark Gordon lauded a controversial universal school voucher bill Tuesday morning before signing it into law hours later. House Bill 199, 'Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act,' will represent a significant expansion of school choice in the state, offering families $7,000 per child annually for K-12 non-public-school costs like tuition or tutoring. The scholarship will also offer money for pre-K costs, but only to income-qualified families who are at or below 250% of the federal poverty level. Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter The legislation has sparked a deluge of constituent feedback, according to lawmakers, both from supporters of school choice and from critics who call the measure an unconstitutional bill that will erode the quality of public education in the state. Gordon had himself partially vetoed a similar bill last year, citing constitutional concerns. However, he lauded this version as a 'remarkable achievement for Wyoming.' 'I'm very excited that we're not only going to be able to expand K-12 choices to be accompanied by careful oversight and … ensure that all families have access to the best educational options,' Gordon said, 'but as we pursue these opportunities, I want to make sure that we uphold the strength of Wyoming's public schools.' The law will transform and expand an existing state education savings account program that gives public money to income-qualified families to help them pay for pre-K programs, homeschooling costs or private school tuition. The education savings account program was passed last year and began accepting applicants in January. House Bill 199 sponsor Rep. Ocean Andrew, R-Laramie, called the 2024 ESA program much too narrow. His new bill proposed to offer up to $7,000 per student regardless of a family's economic needs. Along with making the program universal, in its original form, the bill dropped: the preschool component, a requirement that participating students take statewide assessments or similar nationwide tests and a requirement that providers be certified by the Department of Education. The bill has been transformed substantially as it travelled through the Legislature; some 26 amendments were brought, including 11 that passed. Along with changing the name from the Wyoming Freedom Scholarship Act, the final version reinstated the assessment requirements, the provider certification and the inclusion of pre-K, though families have to show income need to qualify for that portion. It spurred much debate as it traveled through the body, triggering discussion on the state of public education in Wyoming, the constitutionality of the program and the importance of early childhood education. Many lawmakers asked what the rush is, given that Wyoming's existing ESA program is only two months old. Those who say the new law is unconstitutional cite Article 7, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution, which reads: 'Nor shall any portion of any public school fund ever be used to support or assist any private school, or any school, academy, seminary, college or other institution of learning controlled by any church or sectarian organization or religious denomination whatsoever.' When Gordon partially vetoed the education savings account bill last year, he pointed specifically to constitutional concerns when he narrowed eligibility to families at or below 150% of the federal poverty level. That referenced the constitutional language that prohibits the state from giving money to individuals 'except for the necessary support of the poor.' On Tuesday, he said he's taken the last year to consider the issue, 'and I realize that that will be sort of handled by our courts' if the question is asked. 'In the meantime, I think it's important to remember that we have all been working to try to expand school choice, and this gives that opportunity for parents.' This comes less than a week after a judge ruled in favor of the Wyoming Education Association and eight school districts in a court case that's anticipated to have major implications for the state. Laramie County District Court Judge Peter Froelicher ruled the Wyoming Legislature has been unconstitutionally underfunding the state's public schools and ordered the state to fix that. House Bill 199 drew loads of attention — both from local advocacy groups vowing to fight it and from out-of-state groups lobbying for its passage. President Donald Trump even weighed in when he gave kudos to Senate President Bo Biteman for helping to advance the legislation. 'This would be an incredible Victory for Wyoming students and families,' Trump wrote on Truth Social while the measure was still awaiting Senate votes. 'Every Member of the Wyoming Senate should vote for HB 199. I will be watching!' In Wyoming, the hard-right House Freedom Caucus celebrated the signing of the bill, crediting Rep. Andrew for its success. 'Finally, we can say that in Wyoming, we support students, not systems,' a Wyoming Freedom Caucus Facebook post read. Many in the detractor camp, meanwhile, decried Gordon's action. 'Particularly in light of the extraordinary opposition to the voucher program by the majority of Wyoming's residents, we are disappointed by Gov. Gordon's decision to sign HB199 into law,' the Wyoming Education Association said in a statement. The association also questioned the decision's wisdom following so closely on the heels of the strongly worded ruling. 'The district court's ruling from only days ago confirmed that the state is not funding public education to the level as it is required, and the choice to take taxpayer dollars to support a voucher program is a curiously poor decision,' the WEA said. The organization warned that similar laws in other states have proven these types of programs to be vulnerable to waste, fraud and abuse and ineffective in improving student performance. 'Unconstitutional universal voucher programs serve as a taxpayer-funded welfare handout to wealthy families whose communities have access to such schools and whose students already attend private schools,' the WEA said. During his press conference Tuesday, Gordon characterized the ESA bill passed last year as a generic program. 'I know it's a big national agenda item,' he said of school choice. 'But it's important to remember that this is Wyoming's way of doing it. This was created and crafted by people here in Wyoming, not somebody from out of state … and it really meets the needs specifically of Wyoming.' Reporter Maggie Mullen contributed to this article. This story was originally published at WyoFile
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wyoming Gov. Calls Universal School Voucher Bill a ‘Remarkable Achievement'
This article was originally published in WyoFile. Gov. Mark Gordon lauded a controversial universal school voucher bill Tuesday morning before signing it into law hours later. House Bill 199, 'Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act,' will represent a significant expansion of school choice in the state, offering families $7,000 per child annually for K-12 non-public-school costs like tuition or tutoring. The scholarship will also offer money for pre-K costs, but only to income-qualified families who are at or below 250% of the federal poverty level. Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter The legislation has sparked a deluge of constituent feedback, according to lawmakers, both from supporters of school choice and from critics who call the measure an unconstitutional bill that will erode the quality of public education in the state. Gordon had himself partially vetoed a similar bill last year, citing constitutional concerns. However, he lauded this version as a 'remarkable achievement for Wyoming.' 'I'm very excited that we're not only going to be able to expand K-12 choices to be accompanied by careful oversight and … ensure that all families have access to the best educational options,' Gordon said, 'but as we pursue these opportunities, I want to make sure that we uphold the strength of Wyoming's public schools.' The law will transform and expand an existing state education savings account program that gives public money to income-qualified families to help them pay for pre-K programs, homeschooling costs or private school tuition. The education savings account program was passed last year and began accepting applicants in January. House Bill 199 sponsor Rep. Ocean Andrew, R-Laramie, called the 2024 ESA program much too narrow. His new bill proposed to offer up to $7,000 per student regardless of a family's economic needs. Along with making the program universal, in its original form, the bill dropped: the preschool component, a requirement that participating students take statewide assessments or similar nationwide tests and a requirement that providers be certified by the Department of Education. The bill has been transformed substantially as it travelled through the Legislature; some 26 amendments were brought, including 11 that passed. Along with changing the name from the Wyoming Freedom Scholarship Act, the final version reinstated the assessment requirements, the provider certification and the inclusion of pre-K, though families have to show income need to qualify for that portion. It spurred much debate as it traveled through the body, triggering discussion on the state of public education in Wyoming, the constitutionality of the program and the importance of early childhood education. Many lawmakers asked what the rush is, given that Wyoming's existing ESA program is only two months old. Those who say the new law is unconstitutional cite Article 7, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution, which reads: 'Nor shall any portion of any public school fund ever be used to support or assist any private school, or any school, academy, seminary, college or other institution of learning controlled by any church or sectarian organization or religious denomination whatsoever.' When Gordon partially vetoed the education savings account bill last year, he pointed specifically to constitutional concerns when he narrowed eligibility to families at or below 150% of the federal poverty level. That referenced the constitutional language that prohibits the state from giving money to individuals 'except for the necessary support of the poor.' On Tuesday, he said he's taken the last year to consider the issue, 'and I realize that that will be sort of handled by our courts' if the question is asked. 'In the meantime, I think it's important to remember that we have all been working to try to expand school choice, and this gives that opportunity for parents.' This comes less than a week after a judge ruled in favor of the Wyoming Education Association and eight school districts in a court case that's anticipated to have major implications for the state. Laramie County District Court Judge Peter Froelicher ruled the Wyoming Legislature has been unconstitutionally underfunding the state's public schools and ordered the state to fix that. House Bill 199 drew loads of attention — both from local advocacy groups vowing to fight it and from out-of-state groups lobbying for its passage. President Donald Trump even weighed in when he gave kudos to Senate President Bo Biteman for helping to advance the legislation. 'This would be an incredible Victory for Wyoming students and families,' Trump wrote on Truth Social while the measure was still awaiting Senate votes. 'Every Member of the Wyoming Senate should vote for HB 199. I will be watching!' In Wyoming, the hard-right House Freedom Caucus celebrated the signing of the bill, crediting Rep. Andrew for its success. 'Finally, we can say that in Wyoming, we support students, not systems,' a Wyoming Freedom Caucus Facebook post read. Many in the detractor camp, meanwhile, decried Gordon's action. 'Particularly in light of the extraordinary opposition to the voucher program by the majority of Wyoming's residents, we are disappointed by Gov. Gordon's decision to sign HB199 into law,' the Wyoming Education Association said in a statement. The association also questioned the decision's wisdom following so closely on the heels of the strongly worded ruling. 'The district court's ruling from only days ago confirmed that the state is not funding public education to the level as it is required, and the choice to take taxpayer dollars to support a voucher program is a curiously poor decision,' the WEA said. The organization warned that similar laws in other states have proven these types of programs to be vulnerable to waste, fraud and abuse and ineffective in improving student performance. 'Unconstitutional universal voucher programs serve as a taxpayer-funded welfare handout to wealthy families whose communities have access to such schools and whose students already attend private schools,' the WEA said. During his press conference Tuesday, Gordon characterized the ESA bill passed last year as a generic program. 'I know it's a big national agenda item,' he said of school choice. 'But it's important to remember that this is Wyoming's way of doing it. This was created and crafted by people here in Wyoming, not somebody from out of state … and it really meets the needs specifically of Wyoming.' Reporter Maggie Mullen contributed to this article. This story was originally published at WyoFile
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Universal school voucher bill passes Wyoming Senate, heads back to House
CHEYENNE — A controversial universal school voucher bill was the subject of more long debate over its constitutionality in the Wyoming Senate on Wednesday before passing its third and final reading by a vote of 20-11. House Bill 199, 'Wyoming Freedom Scholarship Act,' will now go back to the House of Representatives for a concurrence vote before heading to the governor's desk. However, several senators said they received hundreds, if not thousands, of text messages, emails and phone calls from their constituents, urging them not to pass the bill. Sen. Bill Landen, R-Casper (2025) Sen. Bill Landen, R-Casper 'The money, according to my emails, is the biggest issue for folks back in my district. It's a big deal,' said Sen. Bill Landen, R-Casper. By 2026, the universal school voucher program would cost the state $44.3 million, according to the Legislative Service Office. 'They want to know why we're going to come up with whatever amount we're going to come up with, and we're going to pay folks to keep their kids at home.' Landen voted against passing the bill. Last year, lawmakers passed a bill to set up the state's first-ever education savings account (ESA) program. It sets aside state funds so that parents can send their child to a non-public K-12 school. Currently, the Cowboy State's ESA program, which started accepting applications in January, has a family income requirement at or below 150% of the federal poverty level and allows for reimbursement of qualifying expenses up to $6,000 per child per year to attend a private school of the parent's choice. HB 199, sponsored by House Majority Whip and Wyoming Freedom Caucus member Rep. Ocean Andrew, R-Laramie, guts key parts of the program that some lawmakers argue made it constitutional in the first place. Originally, Andrew's bill eliminated the program's nationally normed assessment and certification requirements, removed preschool eligibility for ESAs and changed the funding source from the general fund (Wyoming's main spending account) to federal mineral royalties (FMRs), which also fund public K-12 schools. As the bill made its way through the House of Representatives, however, legislators reinserted the certification process for private schools receiving ESA funding and added vague language related to assessment requirements. It passed the House on a third and final vote of 39-21, with two members excused. The bill has not escaped the attention of President Donald Trump, who spotlighted it in a Sunday post on his social media platform, Truth Social, urging Wyoming lawmakers to pass the legislation. 'This would be an incredible Victory for Wyoming students and families. Every Member of the Wyoming Senate should vote for HB 199,' Trump wrote. 'I will be watching!' However, some Wyomingites appear less eager to see the universal school voucher bill signed into law. Critics of the bill, and other controversial education bills sponsored by Andrew, even called for a boycott of the House majority whip's food truck business, On the Hook, according to Changes in the Senate Senators passed a total of six amendments to the bill, both in committee and on the Senate floor. However, some adopted amendments canceled out those adopted in previous readings of the legislation. For example, during the bill's first reading, Sen. Wendy Schuler, R-Evanston, brought an amendment to reinstate an income-based requirement for the program. Schuler's amendment broke down how much each child would receive based on varying levels of household income. Sen. Wendy Schuler, R-Evanston (2025) Sen. Wendy Schuler, R-Evanston In her amendment, families at or below 150% of the federal poverty level would receive $6,000 per child; families at or between 200% and 150% of the federal poverty level would receive $4,800 per child; and families at or between 250% and 200% of the federal poverty level would receive $3,600 per child. Household incomes above 250% of the federal poverty level would not qualify for an ESA. 'Going back to this income base, and having it based on the poverty level, will get us where we need to go to get past the constitutional issues,' Schuler said. The Evanston senator said she is supportive of school choice, but only if it's done right. Adding an income-level requirement was the best way Schuler said she could get behind HB 199. Senators adopted Schuler's amendment in a tight vote, but the work was quickly undone in an amendment brought by Sen. Evie Brennan, R-Cheyenne, during the bill's second reading. Her amendment deleted Schuler's amendment, removing the income-based provision, and opening it back up to $7,000 per child for all families. Sen. Evie Brennan, R-Cheyenne (2025) Sen. Evie Brennan, R-Cheyenne 'This is for the education of our next generation, and it's about all of our students having equitable access to the same scholarship and the same amount of money,' Brennan said, 'so that they can all get educated in the environment that best suits them.' Supporters of Brennan's amendment criticized the income-based requirement as 'discriminatory.' Sen. Charles Scott, R-Casper, said this requirement sets a 'dangerous precedent' for school funding. Sen. Charles Scott, R-Casper (2025) Sen. Charles Scott, R-Casper 'Education, Mr. Chairman, is one of the most fundamental services that our state and local governments provide,' Scott said. 'We have never had a means test on education.' One amendment that managed to stick through the bill's final reading in the upper chamber, proposed by Sen. Chris Rothfuss, D-Laramie, was to add back the eligibility of pre-kindergarten schools for ESA funds. 'It simply, in my view, puts the best part of the program back in place,' Rothfuss said. Other successful changes to the bill include changing the source of funds from FMRs back to the state's general fund, requiring either a nationally normed or statewide assessment for ESA students and changing the name to the 'Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act.' This name change is in honor of the famous Wyoming rodeo bucking horse, Steamboat, and its rider, which are seen on every Wyoming license plate and in many other places statewide. Constitutional concerns Before the vote that sent the bill back to the lower chamber, senators against the legislation made their final remarks on the bill's constitutionality. Rothfuss said, even with the pre-kindergarten language back in the bill, it still remained in violation of the Wyoming Constitution. 'The question is, do we want to provide $7,000 per year to individuals that are not in need?' Rothfuss said. The Democratic senator pointed out that the ESA program is already in place — the question on the table is whether lawmakers supported turning it into a universal school voucher program. Schuler, who has previously mentioned her hangup with such programs, said she could not support the bill without the means testing. Article 7, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution states no 'portion of any public school fund ever be used to support or assist any private school, or any school, academy, seminary, college or other institution of learning controlled by any church or sectarian organization or religious denomination whatsoever.' 'I was inching closer to where I could actually support this bill, until we took out the income-based tiers,' Schuler said. However, senators in support of the bill argued the income-based tiers removed equitable participation for all Wyoming schoolchildren. Supporters said parents should be free to put their child in the learning environment that best supports them, regardless of their income. 'Our job is to make sure that our kids get an education, so that they are educated to their abilities and talents,' Brennan said. 'This is what this bill is about. It's not about a good system or a bad system. It's about what is the education environment that our children are going to best learn in?'
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Universal school voucher bill passes Wyoming Senate committee, heads to the floor
CHEYENNE — The constitutionality of a universal school voucher bill was discussed by Wyoming lawmakers in the Senate Education Committee Wednesday morning before they advanced it in a 3-2 vote. Committee Chairwoman Sen. Wendy Schuler, R-Evanston, and Sen. Chris Rothfuss, D-Laramie, both voted against the bill, questioning how it would hold up in court. Schuler said she supports school choice, but her 'biggest hangup is universal school choice.' She said she preferred to see how the Education Savings Account (ESA) bill passed last year would impact state funding and hold up against potential litigation before making any changes to the program. 'I probably will vote against this bill, at least now in this present form. … There's a couple more things we need to do with it, and maybe I can get on board,' Schuler said. House Bill 199, 'Wyoming Freedom Scholarship Act,' passed through the lower chamber and over to the Senate amid a wave of constitutional concerns from both inside and outside the Legislature. Several representatives, both Democratic and Republican, argued this bill violates the state's constitution by using state funds to help parents send their children to private schools. The Education Savings Account program was created through a bill passed by lawmakers in the 2024 budget session, which would have made $6,000 a year available for all parents to send their child to a private school. Gov. Mark Gordon partially vetoed the bill, limiting it to those at or below 150% of the federal poverty level and questioning the constitutionality of anything other than assistance to low-income residents. However, in HB 199, Rep. Ocean Andrew, R-Laramie, proposes several significant changes to the current program, which began accepting applications earlier this year. Rep. Ocean Andrew, R-Laramie (2025) Rep. Ocean Andrew, R-Laramie As currently written, HB 199 removes the family income requirement, raises the per child amount from $6,000 to $7,000 and removes pre-kindergarten schools from program eligibility. The bill also changes the funding source from the state's general fund to federal mineral royalties (FMRs), which is one of several direct revenue sources for the School Foundation Program that funds K-12 public schools. Rothfuss said last year's bill 'had some provisions that moved it toward constitutionality' that are removed in this bill. Such provisions include assistance to the poor and early childhood education. Sen. Chris Rothfuss, D-Laramie (2025) Sen. Chris Rothfuss, D-Laramie 'This legislation eliminates the pre-K and then eliminates any of the constitutional provisions that would have been protective, in my view, of making it unconstitutional,' Rothfuss said. He read out loud Article 7, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution, which states no 'portion of any public school fund ever be used to support or assist any private school, or any school, academy, seminary, college or other institution of learning controlled by any church or sectarian organization or religious denomination whatsoever.' 'The plain reading of that is pretty clear,' Rothfuss said. 'The public funds are for public education. When we break down that system and erode that system, we create challenges, both constitutional challenges, as well as for the functioning of the public education system.' The Senate Education Committee passed the bill on a vote of 3-2, but not without adding a few amendments. Rep. Jared Olsen, R-Cheyenne, asked Andrew about the funding source issue, since federal mineral royalties are already used to fund public schools. Olsen suggested using the state's general fund, Wyoming's main spending account, instead. 'If you remove the funding source the furthest you possibly could from the School Foundation account, and use general fund dollars, you would have the strongest argument against the constitutionality claim,' said Olsen, who was recently involved in the creation of a local charter school, Cheyenne Classical Academy. In response, Andrew pointed to a provision in the bill where ESA money will tip back into the School Foundation Program after the ESA fund reaches a certain threshold. Once the account has more than $130 million and more than 150% of what is needed to meet the following year's demand, the excess funds would go back into the School Foundation Program account. Andrew added that the use of FMRs was recommended to him by lawyers who helped draft the bill 'in the most constitutional way.' The Laramie representative said the FMRs were suggested to be the 'simplest, clean source of money' for the bill. 'These same people have been involved with state Supreme Court cases and national Supreme Court cases on this legislation the whole way, so I trusted what they said,' Andrew said. However, Wyoming Education Association spokesperson Tate Mullen said the bill remained unconstitutional, no matter where the funding came from. The state is constitutionally obligated to fully fund its public schools, and this obligation has yet to be fulfilled, Mullen said. Earlier this session, legislative appropriators voted to reduce the recommended external cost adjustment to K-12 public schools by $17.5 million. The original $66.3 million, passed by former appropriators in the 67th Legislature and Gov. Gordon, was the recommended amount to get the state back on track to fully funding its public schools. 'You have the ability to fully fund a cost-based model of education, whether using whatever account you want to use, but we haven't done it,' Mullen said. 'We're failing to meet our original obligation, yet we're funding this.' Olsen said he considered bringing an amendment to change the source of revenue to the state's general fund, but laid it back for the time being. Sen. Charles Scott, R-Casper, said he wasn't sure if this provision would make the bill constitutionally defensible. Sen. Charles Scott, R-Casper (2025) Sen. Charles Scott, R-Casper 'I don't think you're going to be able to tell until you actually get a court case,' Scott said. Testing, certification The original HB 199 removed the certification process for a private school that receives ESA funds. However, Rep. J.D. Williams, R-Lusk, managed to reinsert this language through an amendment during the bill's second reading in the House. Sen. Evie Brennan, R-Cheyenne, successfully added an amendment to 'tighten up' the certification requirement. Her amendment expanded this language, specifying this process 'shall ensure ESA students attending qualified schools receive instruction in reading, writing, mathematics, civics, history, literature and science throughout their kindergarten through grade 12 tenure.' Sen. Evie Brennan, R-Cheyenne (2025) Sen. Evie Brennan, R-Cheyenne Wyoming senators also reinserted language for a nationally normed or statewide assessment requirement. HB 199 originally removed the testing requirement, and several attempts were made in the House to put it back in. Williams managed to successfully add an amendment during the bill's third and final reading in the House that requires ESA students to be 'assessed on their academic progress.' Olsen proposed putting the original ESA language back in, but modifying it to give recipients the option to take either a nationally normed or statewide exam, to give the bill more 'accountability.' Sen. Jared Olsen, R-Cheyenne (2025) Sen. Jared Olsen, R-Cheyenne 'I strongly believe that we need to put strong accountability back into the bill,' Olsen said. Other amendments were added to the bill, including one that changed the name from the 'Wyoming Freedom Scholarship Act' to the 'Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act.' Olsen said this new name is 'a little more Wyoming.' 'We wanted to find a way to put the buck and rider on this bill, and so 'Steamboat' jumped out,' Olsen said. The bill will now go to the Senate floor for three more readings, before it's sent back to the House for consideration of Senate changes.
