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Florida Commission Approves Constitutional Proposal For School Vouchers

By Howard Friedman

After some apparently complicated bargaining, the Florida Taxation and Budget Commission on Friday reversed an earlier vote and agreed to place on Florida's November ballot a proposed state constitutional amendment that is designed to overrule a state supreme court decision striking down school vouchers. The proposal would amend Art. IX, Sec. 1 of the Constitution by adding that the state's duty to provide for the education of its children shall be "fulfilled at a minimum and not exclusively" by creating a uniform system of free public schools. Saturday's Miami Herald reported that, in order to make the proposal more attractive to voters, the ballot issue will also require schools to spend at least 65% of their budgets on classroom expenses.

Earlier this month, the voucher amendment fell one vote short of the 17 needed for its approval. However on Friday, 19 members of the Commission voted in favor of it, apparently in exchange for the Commission's also approving a proposed amendment that would lower property taxes by 25% and replace the lost revenue with other sources including an increased sales tax. Altogether, the Commission has approved seven constitutional amendments for the November ballot, including one that would repeal the state's "Blaine Amendment" ban on public financial aid to religious institutions. (See prior posting.)

Full post as published by Religion Clause on April 28, 2008 (boomark / email).