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Assembly Passes SB 615 With Compromise Voucher Funding Amendment
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | February 19, 2016
The battle over the voucher funding shift entered its final act (with the ending not in doubt) as the Assembly passed, on a 56-37 vote, a scaled back version of a bill (Senate Bill 615 as amended) that would reduce the non-recurring exemption for “incoming choice pupils” to equal the state aid deduction for voucher students beginning in 2016-17.
The collective reduction in revenue cap authority under this bill would be about $5.3 million for the 142 school districts with voucher students. That compares to previous versions of the proposal that had collective reductions in revenue cap authority of first $22.7 million, and then $14.2 million.
The Senate is expected to pass this latest compromise version of the bill on March 15th.
Throughout this multi-week battle, the SAA’s position has never wavered. We support current law.
Assuming the Senate passes the bill as amended by the Assembly and Governor Walker signs it, the voucher funding shift will be complete. During this legislative session, Republicans succeeded in shifting how Wisconsin pays for voucher expansion from state tax dollars to local property taxpayers. And as we look to the future, this means that two Republican policy objectives, voucher expansion and property tax relief, are on a collision course . . . with public schools in the middle.
Thanks for listening, and as always, thanks for all your efforts on behalf of Wisconsin school children. Every Child, Every Day.
See Wisconsin State Journal news story here.
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