Pennsylvania Final Push For School Choice

Yesterday, the FreedomWorks Pennsylvania Field staff, Ana Puig and I, were in Harrisburg pushing HB2468 in the House. This is EITC/EISC program legislation which was introduced last week by Representive Jim Christiana. This legislation will phase in two components of a proposal to enhance school choice options in PA–The successful EITC program and an Educational Scholarship Credit Program (EISC) that is specifically aimed at rescuing students who are attending PA’s lowest performing schools.

This new program will provide $100 million in tax credits that would be used by low income and working class families who have students enrolled in persistantly violent and poorly performing schools. What distinguishes the EISC program is students would receive the full amount of tuition up to $8500 to attend the school of their choice. For children with disabilites the amount would be $15,000.

We also delivered hundreds of letters from parents across the Commonwealth to various Representives asking them to suport this new School Choice Bill.

Now is the time to give children trapped in failing schools a chance to attend a better school this Fall. From what we’ve heard, it looks like HB2468 has overwhelming support in the House and Governor Corbett is ready to sign a school choice bill into law. What we need now, from all of the grassroots activists who have been following this issue in Pennsylvania, is phone calls to their House Representatives and their Senators. Ask them to make School Choice a priority in the next week before they go home for Summer recess. This bill needs to be passed, together with the budget – time is of the essence!