LINCOLN- Sen. Lou Ann Linehan says she knows that the state tax credit for funding students attending private K-12 schools risks being rejected by voters in November. That's why she and other supporters of the school choice law drafted several bills this year to preserve the heart of the program regardless of the election outcome.

Each proposal would offset the cost of a private K-12 education with state tax dollars. Recently, Linehan settled on LB1402 as this session’s vehicle for the changes. She originally designed the bill to shift the scholarship program created by the Opportunity Scholarships Act to the State Treasurer’s Office and away from nonprofit scholarship-granting groups.

Public school advocates call Linehan’s push an effort to stifle voters’ voices. The advocates contend Nebraskans don’t want public funds spent on private schools, whether through a tax credit or directly. They say the latest amendment would start a voucher program that could cut into state funding for public schools or other priorities even faster than the Opportunity Scholarships Act.

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