Attacks are a diversionary tactic from the real issue:
LB753 diverts public tax dollars to private schools and will hurt our public schools.
July 20, 2023 -- Politicians and privateers are continuing to attack public school advocates who are gathering signatures to keep public tax dollars from being diverted to private schools. The petition effort is being led by Support Our Schools Nebraska, a coalition of Nebraska not-for-profit organizations that believe voters should have the opportunity to choose whether LB753, a controversial school privatization bill that will divert as much as $100 million per year to private schools, remains law.
An opposition group funded primarily by Betsy DeVos has resorted to hiring “blockers” that spread misinformation and intimidate and harass petition circulators in an attempt to prohibit voters from having a say on whether they want to divert public tax dollars to private schools through LB753’s tax credit scheme, a policy some experts say may be in violation of the Nebraska State Constitution.
“Opponents can’t win this argument on the merits, so they take events out of context, selectively edit surreptitiously taken videos and harass people who are trying to support their local public schools. As to the accusations of misinformation and lying, I’ll take this opportunity to remind these privateers that just because we don’t agree with you does not mean we are lying,” said Jenni Benson, a sponsor of Support Our Schools Nebraska.
In a video provided by petition opponents, Clarice Jackson, a political activist who ran unsuccessfully for the legislature as a supporter of giving public funds to private schools, badgers a young Support Our Schools Nebraska circulator with a litany of questions designed to confuse her. The young woman, who was on her first day of collecting signatures, was shaken by the encounter with Jackson and has since been removed from the team of petition circulators.
As required by law, the circulator read the petition’s Object Statement to Jackson. This language clearly states the goal of the petition is to repeal LB753, which provides tax credits to corporations and individuals for making financial contributions to organizations that give students money to attend private schools.
Support Our Schools Nebraska will continue to train circulators to act in accordance with the law and not to engage with bad-faith “blockers.”
“Nebraska voters should have the opportunity to have their voices heard,” said Dunixi Guereca, Stand for Schools Executive Director. “Statewide polling is consistent and clear on this: Nebraskans support public education and do not believe in tax schemes that will benefit a select few while decimating and de-funding the neighborhood schools that serve nine out of ten kids in Nebraska.”
Scholarship tax credits will impact both rural and urban communities. More than half of Nebraska’s 93 counties do not have a private school, and, across the state, chronically underfunded public school districts are facing additional constraints on their ability to raise revenue, unprecedented staff shortages, and growing student needs.
The concerns about LB753 remaining law are many. Beyond its fiscal impact, opponents are wary of the policy’s impact on students, families, and teachers. Representatives of Support Our Schools Nebraska say LB753 lacks necessary transparency and accountability requirements, which are especially important given that private schools are allowed to discriminate in ways public schools are not.
LB753 fails to comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, Free and Appropriate Public Education, and doesn’t have a Zero Reject Policy. Without these critical civil rights protections, students with disabilities will be left without protection.
“LB753 does not help all children. In fact, it even subsidizes discriminatory practices. Unlike public schools, whose doors are open to all, private schools can discriminate against kids. Taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars should not be used to support private schools that are not required to serve all children. Further, there is little evidence that these private school tax voucher programs improve educational outcomes, and numerous studies have even found negative effects in various subject areas,” said Benson.
“This bill is not about providing scholarships to low-income students. Anyone can donate to a nonprofit organization to provide scholarships. That option has always been available, and those donations are treated the same as all other charitable donations in the state. LB753 is about directing money that would otherwise be available for use by the state to private schools,” said Guereca.
Support Our Schools Nebraska will continue to circulate petitions in communities across the state.
For more information, including dates and locations where you can find a petition to sign, please visit: https://supportourschoolsnebraska.org/