BOISE, Idaho — Education and the accessibility to private schools took a major shift after Gov. Brad Little signed House Bill 93 into law on Thursday. The bill opens up $50 million to middle-class parents who otherwise might not have been able to afford private education.
Gov. Brad Little got support from President Trump.
There's a formula — any Idahoan making 300% above the federal poverty line qualifies for reimbursement. For a family of three, that's just under $80,000 per year.
RELATED: Governor Brad Little signs Parental Choice Tax Credit bill
For each child that you have, you may apply for up to $5,000 per student in tax reimbursements. This idea is not sitting well with many.
"So if we should be talking about funding education, why are we not taking that money and giving it to our public education system?" said Leslie Goodale.
Goodale is a mother to two elementary schoolers and feels forgotten.
"Because I feel like I have heard myself that a lot of parents and educators didn't want it. And so it almost felt like we weren't being listened to," Goodale said.
Still, one parent speaking in favor of the bill said, "We have been looking at private school for our kids since last year. This bill would be a game changer for us. Being able to provide a better education that meets our beliefs and standards would be huge."
Understanding what this could allow for parents seeking, as the bill calls it, non-public schooling, I wanted to know how this could affect the many certificated teachers in Idaho.
I spoke to the Idaho Education Association, the largest union representation in the state, about what effects they could see.
"Every day, our educators are doing more with less than anybody else in the country. Per student funding in the state of Idaho is at the bottom of the barrel. And this legislation is just gonna take more money away from public schools. No matter what the proponents of this legislation say, that money that they're spending on a voucher program should be invested in our public schools," said Mike Journee.
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