Court Watch
Court Watch provides the latest news on recent court decisions involving state and federal education initiatives benefitting students attending private and religious schools.
Computers: Title VI Program
Louisiana (June, 2000)
The U.S. Supreme Court voted 6-3 to uphold the constitutionality of providing instructional materials, including computers, to students attending religiously-affiliated schools through the Title VI program (formerly Chapter 2) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
Justice Thomas wrote the plurality opinion upholding the program, joined by Chief Justice Rehnquist, and Justices Scalia and Kennedy. Justice O'Connor wrote a concurring opinion, joined by Justice Breyer. Justices Souter, Stevens, and Ginsburg dissented.
In addition to upholding the program, a six-member majority of the Court agreed in the plurality and concurring opinions that
- the Court's decisions in Meek v. Pittenger (1975) and Wolman v. Walter (1977) are overruled. The earlier decisions held that the provision of certain instructional materials and equipment other than textbooks is unconstitutional.
- the possible diversion of some forms of assistance is insufficient cause for holding that assistance unconstitutional.
- "private choice" is a significant factor in determining the constitutionality of a government-sponsored program that provides educational benefits to recipients attending a religious institution.
Tax credits/deductions
Illinois (April 2001)
A three-judge panel of the Fifth District Appellate Court of Illinois ruled unanimously on April 4, 2001, that the Illinois educational expenses tax credit is constitutional. The ruling concurs with a unanimous decision of the Fourth District Appellate Court in February which also upheld the tax credit. The Illinois tax credit allows families to claim a credit of up to $500 for 25 percent of their K-12 educational expenses over $250, including tuition, book fees or lab fees.
The Fifth District Court held that the tax credit is "equally available to all parents of public or nonpublic school children," and that it "does not involve any appropriation or use of public funds," but rather "allows Illinois parents to keep more of their own money to spend on the education of their children as they see fit."
The tax credit was also upheld by two earlier circuit court decisions in Illinois. The favorable decisions of eight judges in four Illinois courts augurs well for the credit being upheld, should the credit be challenged on appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court.
Arizona (October, 1999)
The U.S. Supreme Court let stand an Arizona State Supreme Court ruling upholding the constitutionality of a 1997 state law permitting a state income tax credit of up to $500 for contributions to private K-12 scholarship programs. The law also offers taxpayers up to a $200 credit as reimbursement for funds paid to public schools for such items as scientific laboratory materials or extracurricular activities fees.
Vouchers
Ohio (December, 2000)
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled 2-1 in December, 2000, that the Cleveland voucher program is unconstitutional because the aid provided by the program "principally flows to religious institutions." The voucher program, initiated in 1995, allows some 3,800 Cleveland students to use vouchers worth up to $2,250 to attend the public, private or parochial school of their choice. No public schools are currently participating in the voucher program; of the 56 private schools participating in the program, 46 are religiously affiliated.
It is anticipated the decision will be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, and that the program will be allowed to continue during the appeals process.
(Florida April 2001)
The Florida Supreme Court declined in a 4-1 decision on April 24, 2001, to review a ruling of the First District Court of Appeals upholding the constitutionality of Florida's statewide voucher program.
The three-judge panel of the First District Court of Appeals ruled unanimously in October, 2000, that the program did not violate the Florida constitution's requirement to guarantee a "uniform, efficient, safe, secure and high-quality system of free public schools." The case will now return to the Leon County Circuit Court to settle additional First Amendment and other state constitutional challenges filed by teacher unions and other opponents.
The statewide program provides opportunity scholarships to allow students at public schools that fail statewide accountability requirements for two consecutive years to attend private or religious schools, or a better performing public school. Only two public schools failed the state tests twice in 1999; no public schools failed the test for the second time in 2000. The 53 students who opted to attend private and religious schools through the scholarship program during the 1999-2000 school year will be allowed to continue in the program while the program is in litigation.
Wisconsin (November, 1998)
The U.S. Supreme Court, on November 11, 1998, refused to hear an appeal of the June decision of the Wisconsin Supreme Court that held that the Milwaukee voucher program did not violate the First Amendment. The State Supreme Court's decision overturned a 1997 decision of the Fourth District Court of Appeals, which ruled that the program was unconstitutional. In letting the State court's ruling stand, the U.S. Supreme Court's decision allows the more than 10,000 low-income students participating in the ten-year-old program to continue using publicly-funded vouchers to attend about 90 private and parochial schools in the Milwaukee area.
Maine (October, 1999)
The U.S. Supreme Court refused to review the Maine Supreme Courts's ruling of April, 1999, which found that parents did not have the right under either the state or U.S. Constitution to receive state supported tuition assistance to send their children to a religiously-affiliated school.
Currently the state pays to send students to any secular private school, instate or out-of-state, in jurisdictions that do not operate a public school.
Vermont (June, 1999)
Vermont's Supreme Court ruled against tuition payments to sectarian schools "in the absence of adequate safeguards against the use of such funds for religious worship." This ruling allows for inclusion of religiously-affiliated schools in the "tuitioning" program once "adequate safeguards" are implemented. Vermont's tuition program is similar to that of Maine.