Constitutional obligations to Oklahoma schools undermined
During the 2023 legislative session, the Parental Choice Tax Credit Act was approved, providing as much as $7,500 per child for private school tuition. The legislation also provides up to $1,000 for home-schooling expenses.
Supporters of this program framed it as enabling more Oklahoma families to take advantage of other education options, such as private school, by making it more affordable, but in fact, the wealthiest families — even those earning millions — will be able to access public dollars.
Families earning less than $150,000 a year can apply beginning the first week of December, then everyone else can begin applying Jan. 1. There’s an overall cap of $150 million for tax year 2024, and by 2026, a $250 million cap. Not only are lower-income families barely prioritized, but we are now told the cost to taxpayers is going to be even higher because of administrative costs.
Last spring, the Oklahoma Tax Commission estimated the administrative cost of the program at $1 million in the current fiscal year, with an additional $706,000 the next year.
But now we’ve learned the Tax Commission has outsourced administration of the program to a company called Merit, and the actual cost for a one-year contract will be nearly $4 million dollars — four times higher than the estimate given to legislators. Furthermore, there was no competitive bidding for this contract and no guarantee of transparency in program administration moving forward.
The Oklahoma Constitution is clear. We have a mandate to fund and maintain a public school system for the benefit of every child in our state. Despite recent investments, we are still dealing with the negative impact of previous cuts.
Just this past summer, the Annie E. Casey Foundation released its annual KIDS COUNT report that revealed Oklahoma was ranked 46th in the nation for child well-being, and 49th for education. The metrics in that education ranking include children 3 and 4 years of age not in school, fourth-graders not proficient in reading, eighth-graders not proficient in math, and high school students not graduating on time. It’s even more concerning when you compare the 2023 ranking of 49th in education, to just a decade ago — in 2013, we were ranked 40th in the nation. We’re losing ground, and it points to the need for more, not less funding for our public schools.
An education provides children with tools needed to succeed throughout life, decreases reliance on social services, and provides the knowledge and skills to become engaged citizens. The vast majority of children, nearly 670,000 in the 2021-22 school year, attended public schools, compared to less than 33,000 who attended private schools that same year.
The state is diverting tax dollars from our public schools when we should be investing even more, and now we’ve learned the price tag is higher than we’d initially been told. It’s a disappointing development that undermines our constitutional mandate to fund and maintain public schools, and one that increasingly shortchanges the overwhelming majority of Oklahoma children.
Sen. Kay Floyd, a Democrat, represents District 46 and is the minority leader in the Oklahoma Senate.