Republican legislators in Wisconsin have just secured an unlikely win for school choice that is a ray of hope for the movement nationwide.
While many recent statewide school choice successes have come from Republican-controlled governments, Wisconsin Republicans struck a deal with Democratic Gov. Tony Evers that benefits both parties. A school choice win in a divided government is rare. Wisconsin can serve as an example of how other divided governments can advance this educational movement.
On June 20, Evers signed the legislation after it passed with bipartisan votes. Previously, private schools participating in the choice program received $8,399 for grades K-8 and $9,045 for high school — around 61 percent of what regular public schools receive. Independent charter schools received $9,264. The bill increases the per-pupil funding to $9,499 in grades K-8 and $11,993 in high school. Independent charters now receive $10,991. With this increase, school choice participants will receive 73 percent of what public schools get — putting Wisconsin in seventh place for the smallest funding gap nationwide.
The passage of this bill marks a huge win for the school choice program and a historical example of bipartisan dealmaking.
This was a significant concession for Evers, who has a long opposition to school choice. To pass the deal, Republican leadership agreed to concede on an assembly bill, signed as part of the deal package. This legislation boosts state revenue sharing for communities across the state — a critical measure for Milwaukee and Milwaukee County, which face bankruptcy due to underfunded pensions.
While Republicans were adamant about requiring the referendum to raise the city and county sales tax, Democrats believed voters wouldn’t go for it and feared the risk was too great in the face of insolvency. This conversation provoked a compromise, allowing both parties to pass bills fitting their respective agendas.
The shared revenue bill was passed May 17, with the referendum requirement. Negotiations continued between legislative leaders and the governor. A deal was made June 8 to remove the referendum requirement and make a large investment in school choice. There was also a $1 billion investment in public schools. The next day, the measure was introduced in the Senate.
Republican leadership knew how important public school funding and removing the referendum requirement was for Democrats, and they seized that opportunity to persuade the governor to pass additional school choice funding.
Many states have successfully passed school choice legislation recently, but they have one thing in common: a unified Republican government. This year, Florida, Iowa, Arkansas and Utah enacted education savings accounts. Other wins include Indiana passing nearly universal school choice eligibility, Tennessee expanding its education savings account pilot program, and Nebraska passing its first private choice program.
These examples don’t suggest that having a unified government is a straight path to success. States like Texas and Georgia faced opposition from rural legislators or activists, which caused school choice legislation to fail, but having a unified government helps.
This school choice success in Wisconsin is rare and a great example of how divided governments should conduct bipartisan dealmaking. As far as split governments go, the only other state on track for a win this year is North Carolina, where its Republican supermajority can override a governor’s veto.
Other divided governments are not so lucky. A Kansas bill, which would have created an education savings account for most students in the state, did not move past the conference committee. Gov. Laura Kelly also line-item vetoed part of an education spending bill that assisted families with sending their children to private or homeschools. Kentucky also had a bill that did not pass the rules committee. Louisiana has two pieces of legislation moving recently, but it is yet to be seen if they will be passed and signed by the governor. Virginia, with a Republican governor and House and a Democratic Senate, could not get enough votes to pass its school choice legislation.
Republicans in these states should learn from Wisconsin’s example and consider similar opportunities to progress school choice in their state. Neither party walked away with everything they wanted, but Wisconsin has shown it’s possible that opposing parties can compromise. It may be the only way forward.
