Corbett would agree to scale back school voucher program

By Brad Bumsted and Sari Heidenreich, TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, June 20, 2011


HARRISBURG — Gov. Tom Corbett wants to see a school voucher program enacted by June 30 and would support a compromise to scale the program back to two years, his spokesman said today.
Meanwhile, House Republicans on Tuesday will hold a closed-door caucus session on vouchers and other education issues, lawmakers and staff said. A new compromise voucher proposal will be unveiled at 10:30 a.m. by a Beaver County Republican.


Corbett still supports the four-year program proposed under Senate Bill 1 — stalled in the Senate — ″but wants to see some type of vouchers pass,″ said Kevin Harley, his press secretary.
The governor in January identified vouchers as one of his priorities.


Senate Education Chairman Jeffrey Piccola, R-Dauphin County, the lead sponsor of S.B. 1. also said he would ″be more than willing″ to negotiate a compromise for a two-year voucher program along  with expanded business-paid scholarships through a state tax credit program, his spokeswoman Colleen Greer said.


Rep. Jim Christiana, a Republican from Beaver County, on Tuesday will introduce a bill for a two-year voucher program and an expansion of the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC.) Corbett also backs an EITC expansion.


The bill will be co-sponsored by Tony Payton, D-Philadelphia.


Under the bill, taxpayer-paid vouchers would enable low-income parents of kids in failing public schools to send their children to parochial and private schools, according to a co-sponsorship memo by Christiana, a Republican. Middle-income kids would get more opportunities through an expanded scholarship program, he said.


Today, Rep. Curt Schroder, R-Chester County, announced two voucher bills. His broadest bill (HB 1679) would provide all students with $5,000 vouchers, and the second (HB 1678) would provide that same level of funding only to students who attend or live within the attendance boundary of one of the state's 144 failing schools. The broader bill, he said, is his preference but the second is more realistic.
The Pennsylvania State Education Association, the state's largest teachers' union, opposes vouchers.
″At the current moment, when the commonwealth is saying they can't afford to fund the public schools, there is certainly no reason to redirect that money,″ spokesman David Broderic said.


With public schools likely losing a substantial chunk of state funding in the budget, the money that is left should be used for programs such as full day kindergarten, he said.


″This is not the time to be directing state money to any kind of a tuition voucher program because our public schools are on the chopping block, so to speak,″ he said of the fact that vouchers would allow state money to follow students to private schools.


″Certainly there are school districts that are struggling ... School vouchers are not the answer,″ Broderic said.


A key question is whether House leadership would call up a voucher bill for a vote before the summer recess.


″There's been no definitive statement from leadership,″ said House Education Chairman Paul Clymer, R-Bucks County. ″It's in a mix″ with other education bills, he said.


″It's like a yellow light — be on the alert, things could move,″ Clymer said.


The state budget by law must be completed by June 30. Lawmakers will break for summer on or near that date.