Utah’s proposed vouchers won’t cover most private schools

The overwhelming majority of Salt Lake County’s non-public colleges price greater than the $8,000 vouchers being proposed in a brand new invoice that is shifting by means of the state Legislature.

Particulars: The invoice requires $42.5 million to cowl tuition and administration for a “Utah Matches All Scholarship Program” — sufficient for about 5,000 college students to get the $8,000.

• The identical invoice additionally provides public faculty academics a $6,000 increase.

Why it issues: If vouchers do not cowl the price of non-public colleges, it quantities to a taxpayer subsidy for colleges that not all children can afford to attend.

Driving the information: An Axios evaluation of almost 40 non-public colleges in Salt Lake County reveals only a few charged lower than $8,000 per yr in tuition and costs.

• That features simply eight of 33 non-public kindergartens whose prices had been obtainable, 4 of 28 elementary and center colleges and no non-public excessive colleges.
• Dad and mom must kick in additional than $1,500 for an eighth grader to attend a lot of the county’s non-public center colleges and not less than $3,600 in any respect however one of many excessive colleges.

Zoom out: Voucher recipients in Wisconsin, Arizona and New Hampshire had been overwhelmingly already attending non-public faculty. Meaning the subsidies principally went to children whose households might already afford the schooling.

The most recent: Utah’s voucher invoice, sponsored by Republicans Rep. Candice Pierucci and Sen. Kirk Cullimore, handed the Home 54-20 on Friday.

• It now strikes to a Senate committee.

Catch up fast: An analogous invoice failed within the Home final yr, and Gov. Spencer Cox mentioned he’d veto it if it handed.

• Sure, however: Cox mentioned in December he’d be open to signing a voucher invoice if public faculty academics additionally obtained a pay increase, which the brand new laws requires.

Flashback: Legislators final authorized vouchers in 2007, however voters later rejected the legislation in a referendum.

The massive image: Utah is one among not less than 10 states contemplating vouchers this yr.