MICHIGAN

REPORT

Information Pertinent to Legislative and State Department Activities Since 1906

Since the proposed language on the voucher proposal first began to be circulated last year it has been commonly described as affecting just the worst performing state school districts with the potential of going into every school district by a local vote. As the likelihood grows, however, that the voucher proposal will be on the November ballot, consideration is beginning to take hold on some of the broader aspects of the proposal, including the possibility the proposal would allow the Legislature to create a statewide voucher or student assistance plan on its own.

One of the primary authors of the proposal, Lansing attorney Richard McLellan, said the real heart of the issue is the first paragraph where the current constitutional prohibition on aid to private and parochial schools either "directly or indirectly" would be limited to simply prohibiting direct aid to private and parochial schools.

Such a provision would allow the Legislature to decide to provide a variety of aid to all school pupils, he said, such as providing credit to acquire textbooks, library services or special education. The Legislature could also decide to enact tax credits to assist pupils, he said.

Mr. McLellan said the provision should help the issue politically as voters realize that the direct prohibition on direct aid to nonpublic and parochial schools remains in effect. Because most people do not read the constitution carefully word by word, or proposals to change the constitution, it is a provision that has not caught much public notice, he said.

But "the information campaign and the disinformation campaign" should get underway soon, he said.

Opponents to the voucher proposal said once the public becomes more aware of the provision that it could help their side, because people would be more worried about the potential for draining money from public schools.

A spokesperson for Kids First! Yes!, the sponsor of the voucher proposal, downplayed the provision, however. "This Legislature can’t even do a modest step like take the cap off charter schools so it’s not likely they would take that broad an action," said Matt Latimer.

There already are statewide implications to the provision, Mr. Latimer said, by assuring that all teachers will undergo testing and a guarantee that funding for all schools will not be cut.

But "our goal is to provide an immediate rescue plan to the small number of districts than can’t even graduate two-thirds of their students," Mr. Latimer said. Under the proposal, vouchers, limited to one-half the tuition paid public schools, would be automatically available in those school districts where the four-year graduation rate is less than two-thirds. In all other districts, vouchers would be possible if either the local school district votes to allow vouchers or the local voters approve them.

Mr. McLellan called those vouchers "section 10" vouchers for their position in Article VIII of the constitution, if approved. But stripping the word "indirectly" from section 2 of the constitutional article would provide the possibility for greater assistance provided by the Legislature, he said.

If private and parochial school officials now are hesitant to support the voucher proposal because they aren’t sure it will help them, Mr. McLellan said he is telling them if the provision passes they then will have to work with the Legislature to see what kind of assistance is forthcoming.

Mr. McLellan said the provision also answers a criticism of Governor John Engler, who has announced his opposition to the proposal in part because it is not broad enough and will miss some students in bad schools in districts that would not qualify for vouchers.

Tony Derezinski of the Michigan Association of School Boards, one of several education organizations opposing the proposal through an organization called All Kids First, said opponents have been aware for several months that the provision could expand vouchers beyond what many people think.

"All the potentialities of this proposal are not within its four corners," he said. "You have to look at it carefully."

Tuition tax credits, a proposal floated by the Midland-based Mackinac Center, would be possible under the provision, Mr. Derezinski said, as well as a flat-out voucher proposal paid directly to students or their parents for use at nonpublic schools.

Mr. Derezinski said this could help opponents as voters realize both that the provision could drain money from the public schools and cost more tax money to cover private and parochial students who are not in the so-called Section 10 districts.

Kirk Curtis of All Kids First was less certain what impact the provision would have. It may depend on the voters approached, he said. For example, he said he is aware that voucher supporters are already telling voters in the western part of the state that if the proposal passes vouchers could be a reality statewide.

Kids First began collecting signatures in September and Mr. Latimer said the group intends to file its signatures with the state when the six-month collection period concludes at the end of February.

The organization has consistently refused to say how many signatures it has collected. Mr. Latimer said the group has collected well over half its goal. To get on the ballot an organization has to have collected more than 302,711 signatures from registered voters.