The NC Senate recently voted to give a total of $632 million for taxpayer-funded private school vouchers to families of all income levels in 2024-25.
HB823/SB406 appropriates an additional $248 million for the coming school year to the Opportunity Scholarship Fund, on top of the $384.5 million that was already appropriated for the 2024-25 school year. The bill also appropriates an additional $215 million to grant fund reserves, meaning that, in total, nearly $1 billion would be appropriated to the Opportunity Scholarship Program in 24-25.
This will give taxpayer-funded private school vouchers to every family that applied, regardless of their income level, for the 24-25 school year. Over half of families who would receive taxpayer dollars to attend private schools make over $115,400, including 18% who make over $259,000 per year.
It’s strange that the state appropriates almost one billion dollars on such a program. That billion would go a long way toward paying teachers a decent wage and providing assistants in the classroom to make the schools we have better. In my opinion it has three major problems. It relinquishes the state of any responsibility. It benefits the well to do that already live in good school areas and have already chosen not to have their children there. These private schools do not have to accept or keep any students. If they are registered they can bill the state for the voucher and then release the student. The student will then go back to the public school that was shorted his voucher funds.
This is disgraceful. Meanwhile, the public schools are falling apart, and the programs are underfunded. Teachers are leaving because they do not have the resources needed to teach.
As a military family, we have lived in several states with school aged children, and North Carolina is by far the worst. This is an embarrassment, and a black eye for the state.