Gov. Jeb Bush determined to force school vouchers into FL Constitution

[seafan]

Really, just what part of "No school vouchers!" does Governor Jeb Bush not understand? I mean, REALLY.

Bush wants school vouchers in Florida's constitution

By JOE FOLLICK
March 30, 2006
....

It was the latest twist in Bush's torturous efforts to overcome the Florida Supreme Court decision earlier this year that deemed the Opportunity Scholarship Program unconstitutional. That program, the nation's first statewide voucher plan, provided state money to pay tuition for more than 700 students at low-achieving public schools so they could instead attend private schools.

Even before the court ruled in January that the program unconstitutionally created a separate and unequal form of public-funded schools, Bush was crafting ways to resurrect the program.

http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060330/LOCAL/203300358/1078/news

Now, he essentially wants to offer taxpayer-funded vouchers to ALL parents in Florida, so that they may remove their children from failing public schools and enroll them in private schools.

This, according to an attorney for the Florida Education Association, "would drive a stake through the heart of public education."

While Democrats raked the proposal, Republicans were mute. Webster was clearly defending it out of a sense of duty. He dubbed the bill's future in the Senate "Mission Impossible" and stuck to his own proposal to change the laws rather than the constitution to resurrect the OSP plan. "The governor indicated this is the way he would like to go," Webster said. "It's his number one issue."

http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060330/LOCAL/203300358/1078/news

Yet, Jeb continues with his "devious plans" to force this issue into our State Constitution, against the will of the majority of Florida voters. This is insignificant to Jeb's way of thinking.

Poll: Majority oppose vouchers
By RON MATUS and DONNA WINCHESTER

March 30, 2006

...

Bush made vouchers a priority soon after he was elected in 1998. The first program he backed, Opportunity Scholarships, offered vouchers to students in public schools that earned F grades from the state twice in four years. Supporters said vouchers would provide those students - now numbering about 700, and predominantly black and Hispanic - a lifeline while spurring improvement in public schools.

Opponents, led by the state teachers union, immediately filed suit. And seven years later, the Supreme Court sided with them.

A 5-2 majority ruled that Opportunity Scholarships violated constitutional requirements for a "uniform, efficient, safe, secure and high quality system of free public schools" - a decision that legal scholars say jeopardizes the other two K-12 voucher programs, which cover some 30,000 students.

Voucher supporters have vowed to save them.

In the Legislature, they are pushing several constitutional fixes, including an amendment that would remove one of the Supreme Court's legal arguments in rejecting vouchers, and another that some observers say could allow the state to offer vouchers to every student. It remains unclear whether the Republican majority has the votes to get those ideas on the November ballot.

http://www.sptimes.com/2006/03/30/State/Poll__Majority_oppose.shtml

What's that, Jeb? You want to remove one of the Supreme Court's legal arguments in rejecting vouchers? You are not our king.

In case Jeb didn't read the St. Pete Times today, he ought to take note of this:



and this:



http://www.sptimes.com/2006/03/30/State/Poll__Majority_oppose.shtml


52% of his guys are against vouchers.


Give it a rest, Jeb. You aren't going to force this on Florida's families. Your first-in-the-nation experiment on our kids and our public schools will be flushed.


Oh, and did this get wide play in the news?

Voucher loophole may be closed

By Rani Gupta
March 29, 2006

A loophole in the state's voucher system, which allows students to receive money for medical ailments long after they have healed, could be eliminated under two bills passed by the state House last week.

...

Students now can qualify for a special-education program classifying them as hospitalized or homebound for any number of physical or psychological ailments, including temporary problems such as broken legs.
Those students can use the status as special-education students to get McKay vouchers, which allow them to attend private schools with taxpayer money.
Once students are accepted into the voucher program, they can continue to receive vouchers until they graduate high school or turn 22, regardless of whether they still need to be kept at home.

More than 16,000 children statewide are on McKay scholarships for disabled students. That includes 76 hospitalized/homebound students who have received almost $400,000 in voucher money this year.
"This particular situation should have been designed so that once the child's physical condition changed, they should return to school," said Sen. Ron Klein, D-Boca Raton. "We shouldn't allow people to create a game out of this. This is not how do we scam public schools and how do we scam the taxpayers."

...

Although attempts to close the loophole for homebound students have failed in the past, King said this may be the year for proponents of stronger voucher accountability measures who have more leverage because of the Supreme Court's decision.
Last year, some districts, including Palm Beach County, noted an increase in the number of students seeking to be classified as hospitalized/homebound.
Officials attributed the increases to unsuccessful attempts to do away with the loophole.

All students have to do to qualify for the homebound program is get a doctor's note, said Russ Feldman, director of exceptional student education for the Palm Beach County School District.
A diagnosis of school phobia was "not uncommon," said Feldman, who added, "We've heard them all."
Children classified as homebound students are entitled to special services, including having teachers visit them at home. But schools that receive McKay vouchers are not required to prove to the state that they provide these services.

...

http://palmbeachpost.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Voucher+loophole+may+be+closed&expire=&urlID=17724888&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.palmbeachpost.com%2Fstate%2Fcontent%2Fstate%2Fepaper%2F2006%2F03%2F29%2Fa11a_xgr_vouchers_0329.html&partnerID=494

This just is so unseemly. Money is being funneled through Jeb Bush's voucher programs to unaccountable destinations.

And with the stench of money laundering and cronyism rotting the Republican Party, it deserves a thorough investigation.


And we need someone more interested in investigating it than Mr. Crist.