Earlier today the Pennsylvania School Choice bill (SB1) cleared a major hurdle, passing the Senate Education Committee with a bipartisan 8-2 vote. FreedomWorks put out the statement below.

FreedomWorks cheered the passage of SB1, The Opportunity Scholarship and Educational Improvement Tax Credit Act, which was passed today in the PA Senate Education Committee by a vote of 8-2. Pennsylvania currently has one of the worst SAT score averages in the nation. On the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment, only about half of 11th graders are proficient in math and reading.  

“This is a great first step in the eventual passage of comprehensive education reform for Pennsylvania children,” commented Matt Kibbe, President of FreedomWorks. “While FreedomWorks is pleased with the Pennsylvania Education Committee’s overwhelming support of SB1, the fight for school choice is far from over.”

We also produced this podcast from one of our on-the-ground volunteers, Ana Puig, who was at the hearing today. Ana has been organizing grassroots folks in support of SB1 and has been lobbying key senators in Harrisburg as well.

The next step for SB1 is passage through the PA Senate Appropriations Committee. We will need YOUR help to get this done. Please check our website often for updates on this campaign, and other key freedom agenda items throughout the country.