It finally happened. Education choice became law in Idaho this legislative session when Governor Brad Little signed House Bill 93. Now, thousands of families will have access to a lifeline that has proven successful in increasing educational outcomes.
Getting here wasn't easy. And unfortunately, implementation may not be either.
Why, in conservative Idaho, did it take so long? Like any state, there are a variety of factors at play. The dominance of a teachers' union, apprehension in rural areas, real commitment by legislative leadership and even simple messaging can make or break any policy change.
Opponents of the new law claim the Governor has "betrayed" Idaho teachers and students by signing the legislation. Some announced plans to sue before the ink was even dry.
This overreaction is as typical as it was wrong. Many of the claims made against HB 93 were also wrongly made by opponents of charter schools before they were adopted by Idaho in 1998. It's hard to comprehend the anger being expressed by some about providing families a tax credit that could help a child get a better education.
The reality is HB 93 doesn't take any money from the state's K-12 budget - not a penny. If you want to compare the two, you'll find that a $50 million tax credit accounts for .0185% of the state's nearly three billion dollar K-12 budget.
If you want to call the program a voucher, you'd be factually wrong. The state will not be writing checks to any private school. And families taking advantage of the credit may not even use the help for private school tuition but rather other educational expenses.
If you want to say there's no accountability, you'd insult the thousands of parents in Idaho who consider their number one priority to provide their child with access to a high-quality education and an opportunity to succeed.
When we first launched Mountain States Policy Center in 2022, I met with editorial boards and lawmakers from across the state. When I informed them that, based on the overwhelming research, MSPC would stand for more education choice options, the reactions caught me off guard.
Numerous newspaper writers and editors responded by saying "so you support closing public schools," contending that both the left and the right seemed to agree that public schools would or should be discarded.
The answer, of course, was and still is an unequivocal no. Public schools are part of education choice, and most families like their public school and want to keep their public school. Idaho's Parental Choice Tax Credit is about providing more options for children who might not fit into the public school box. Nothing more, nothing less.
In the end, the passage of education choice isn't about the Governor, legislators, the teachers' union, activists or even school administrators - it's about the children. As Governor Little rightly said, there's no reason Idaho can't provide both a quality public school system and more education freedom options, just as more than 30 other states have now done.
