Dive Brief:
- The Alabama Accountability Act, which gives families tax credits for moving their children from failing public schools to successful public or private schools, was overturned by a judge who deemed the tax credit expansion unconstitutional.
- The act was created by Alabama's Republican-controlled legislature in February 2013, with the intention of promoting school choice to students stuck in schools with a poor performance history. Opponents of the act believe it diverts public funds to private schools.
- The ruling is likely to be appealed before the state's all-Republican Supreme Court.
Dive Insight:
The original act simply dealt with school flexibility. However, legislators soon introduced tax credits, which is why the judge deemed it unconstitutional. Circuit Judge Gene Reese said the act placed focus on more than one subject by changing its original purpose, school flexibility, which he said should not have cost money. However, the promised tax credits to families who switch schools and businesses who donate scholarships have resulted in an estimated cost of $40 million each year.
On the other side of the coin are families who have benefited from the act. When it was first approved in February 2013, 719 students switched to another school in the same district, 18 transferred to a different public school district, and 52 took advantage of the private schools clause.
As one lawyer representing families utilizing the act said, "Alabama parents should be able to choose the best education possible for their children, whether that's in a public or private school."