Yesterday, Education Voters of PA spent the day at the State Capitol making sure lawmakers understand exactly what’s at stake with Trump’s federal school voucher program.
Throughout the day, we had conversations with lawmakers, staff, and visitors about the serious red flags we found in this program and why claims that it will benefit Pennsylvania’s public schools simply don’t match the facts.
Here are just a few of the red flags we brought with us, all of which have been laid out in the recent guidance from the U.S. Treasury:
- Pennsylvania would have no ability to stop voucher dollars from funding private and religious schools that discriminate against students.
- Families making more than $350,000 a year would qualify to use vouchers toward their children’s private school tuition.
- Private organizations administering the program would keep 10% of the money for administrative costs.
- Public school districts would receive no direct funding from Trump’s voucher program.
- And even families who qualify aren’t guaranteed to receive a scholarship. The scholarship granting organizations and private schools pick the winners and losers.
We made sure lawmakers heard those facts.
In addition to setting up a table in the Capitol rotunda, where we spent the day having thoughtful, substantive conversations – answering questions, clearing up misconceptions, and digging into what this program would actually mean for Pennsylvania – our team dropped off information to the offices of all 253 members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly.
We also hand-delivered a coalition letter to Governor Shapiro urging him to reject the program, along with a petition signed by more than 1,000 Pennsylvanians. Many of those signatures came with powerful comments from people about what their local public schools mean to their families and communities. (If you have not yet signed the petition, click HERE to sign it!)
But our work isn’t finished.
We’ll keep making sure Pennsylvanians understand what this program would and would not do for public education. We will also ensure that Governor Shapiro continues to hear from the people affected by his decision.
The temporary federal regulations that will govern the voucher program for 2027 are expected to be released by the US Treasury any day. Governor Shapiro has said he needs to know what is in the regulations before he can make the decision to reject Trump’s vouchers or opt Pennsylvania into the program. We’ll be digging into the details when they are available and will share with you what they mean for Pennsylvania and our public schools.
Pennsylvania’s public schools educate the overwhelming majority of our children. They deserve policies that invest in them directly, not to be treated as an afterthought in a program being sold in their name.
Thank you to everyone who signed the petition, shared our information, and helped make yesterday possible. This work could not happen without you.
—The Education Voters of PA team
P.S. You can check out the information and resources we had available as of yesterday at the links below. We’ll continue updating you as we learn more.
– The Federal Voucher Loop Scam
– Fast Facts: Five Things PA Should Know About Trump’s Voucher Program