State senators will get a chance to vote on a $50 million private school tuition subsidy bill in the near future.
A Senate committee Wednesday signed off on the bill largely along party lines. Families could apply for a $5,000 refundable tax credit per child to pay for things like private school tuition, textbooks or tutoring.
Senate Majority Leader Lori Den Hartog (R-Meridian), who sponsors the bill, says the $50 million price tag isn’t coming out of the public school budget.
“We have a constitutional obligation to fund our public education system and we’re not going to shy away from that. That hasn’t changed. That’s not going to change,” Den Hartog said.
Sen. Ali Rabe (D-Boise) said conservatives should oppose the measure, noting it creates a new government program, redistributes wealth and offers little to no transparency.
“And I’m having a hard time understanding why these three arguments don’t apply to this bill,” Rabe said.
Public testimony was evenly split, though Boise State’s latest statewide survey shows 53% of Idahoans oppose private school subsidies compared to 38% who support them.
State senators could take up the bill later this week.
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