To the editor:
Now that Gov. Scott Walker is back in Wisconsin and his policies don’t have to please his donors, maybe we can talk about how tax dollars shouldn’t be wasted on private schools.
A nonpartisan report estimated that private school vouchers, which have been pushed by the Republican-controlled Legislature, will cost taxpayers over $1.18 billion by the end of the 2016-17 fiscal year. In addition, the state treasury will take a $30 million per year hit from a tax giveaway to parents already sending their kids to private schools.
State Superintendent Tony Evers said we can no longer honestly say that every child has equal access to the kind of education to put them on the path to live the American Dream. Economic background can now determine the extent of knowledge and skills that a student can obtain from an education in Wisconsin. It is sad that not only are our public schools being hurt by budget cuts, but also failed voucher schools have hurt countless students and families.
Whether they have not met requirements related to finances, accreditation, student safety or auditing, every school needs to serve the best interests of students and taxpayers. It is fiscally unacceptable that 57 taxpayer subsidized voucher schools have been closed since 2003. The most-recent voucher school to take unaccountable taxpayer dollars closed its doors abruptly nine days into the school year.
There are Democratic voices in the Legislature that have proposed restoring the historic budget cuts to public schools as well as strengthening local control and increasing voucher school accountability to reduce fraud. These efforts need to be supported by those of us who pay taxes.
By alerting our present legislators of the need to end the waste, fraud and abuse going on with the voucher school program as it now exists, and casting a ballot for the Democrats who will oppose them in the next elections, we can stop Walker’s failed experiment and restore our public schools.
Chuck Koch,
Shawano
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