Nevada’s Supreme Court struck down one of the most ambitious educational choice programs in the country today.
But it also rejected two key legal arguments against private school choice.
That means that while courts have blocked the Silver State’s new, near-universal education savings accounts, supporters believe the program can soon be revived. And today’s ruling could bolster the constitutional case for school choice programs in other places.
Thousands of families had lined up to use the accounts. But none of them received money from the program because two lawsuits held it in legal limbo.
One case argued ESAs violated a constitutional requirement for the state to provide a “uniform” system of free public schools. The other argued they violated the state’s “Blaine Amendment,” which prohibits the state from using public funds to aid religious institutions.
Justices rejected both those arguments in a 4-2 ruling.
Nevada’s constitution requires a uniform system of free public schools, they wrote, but quoting a previous ruling out of Wisconsin, they concluded that requirement is “not a ceiling but a floor upon which the legislature can build additional opportunities for school children.” Their conclusion jibes with an earlier ruling by Indiana’s high court, which upheld school vouchers in a similar case.
The uniformity argument has been used to attack private school choice programs in other places, including in Florida, where the state Supreme Court blocked a voucher program in 2006. Nevada justices noted there are differences between their state’s uniform public school requirement and Florida’s.
They also ruled ESAs did not violate the Nevada’s Blaine Amendment. Justices held the accounts provide money to parents, who can use the funds to pay for public-school courses, private tutors, homeschooling, and other educational expenses — including tuition at private and parochial schools. Since the accounts are controlled by parents, not the state, the court decided they do not provide unconstitutional public aid to religious institutions.
However, the majority opinion by Justice James Hardesty also found the way Nevada lawmakers passed the bill creating the accounts ran afoul of the state constitution, which requires lawmakers to set aside funding for public schools before they start using money for other purposes. As a result, justices blocked the program and sent the case back to a lower court.
In a statement posted on Twitter, Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt said that if the Legislature fixes that problem, there will be no remaining legal barriers to families using the accounts.
Today’s rulings on Nevada’s Education Savings Account program are a landmark win for the families and children of Nevada. The Supreme Court agreed that the main constitutional hurdles to educational choice cited by opponents are without legal merit. Namely, the Court agreed with our common-sense arguments that ESAs were enacted for an educational purpose, not a religious one, and that the Legislature, in addition to its longstanding support of our public school system, can support educational opportunities outside of that system.
After today’s ruling there is only one step left to take in order to make the vision of educational choice a reality for thousands of Nevada families. The Court ruled against the State on a small funding issue that was not even debated or contentious when this bill was passed. Fortunately, the Supreme Court has made crystal clear that ESAs are constitutional and that the legislature can fix this funding technicality and allow tor the implementation of ESAs statewide. I am proud of my legal team and the Nevada courts for bringing this much-needed clarity to our state in record time, where the ultimate goal is to create a personal approach to education by maximizing each child’s natural learning abilities.
The groups that challenged the program in court, including Americans United for Separation of Church and State, have also declared victory, noting the ESA law in its current form is now permanently blocked.
In a statement, the American Federation for Children called on Gov. Brian Sandoval and the Nevada Legislature to quickly make a “technical fix” to allow nearly 8,000 families to start using ESAs. Lawmakers may be convening next month for a special session to deal with stadium funding.
