Public Policy
News releases, reports, statements and associated documents from public policy organizations whose goal it is to influence the debate Washington.
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Ripon Society: "The Thing That the CCP Fears Most is Bipartisan Support Against China"
WASHINGTON, March 25 (TNSfgov) -- The Ripon Society issued the following news release on March 24, 2023:
In remarks yesterday before a breakfast meeting of The Ripon Society, U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood (IL-16) discussed his role as a member of the newly-created House Select Committee on China and the importance of Republicans and Democrats speaking with one voice when it comes to confronting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) threat.
"I give Speaker McCarthy a lot of credit for creating this the first week that we had our new majority," the Illinois lawmaker stated. "If you look at the vote on the
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WASHINGTON, March 25 (TNSfgov) -- The Ripon Society issued the following news release on March 24, 2023:
In remarks yesterday before a breakfast meeting of The Ripon Society, U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood (IL-16) discussed his role as a member of the newly-created House Select Committee on China and the importance of Republicans and Democrats speaking with one voice when it comes to confronting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) threat.
"I give Speaker McCarthy a lot of credit for creating this the first week that we had our new majority," the Illinois lawmaker stated. "If you look at the vote on theHouse floor to create the Select Committee on China, over 100 Democrats supported it, which is a positive thing. And if you look at who serves on the Select Committee, I don't think we could ask for better members. They are substantive, very smart, conscientious, and they bring a lot to the table, both on our side and the Democrat side.
"Chairman Gallagher does an excellent job leading the committee. He's articulate. He knows the subject matter very well. I think he's been very inclusive, taking in all views on both sides of the aisle. The same with the Ranking Member, Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08). Raja and I are obviously both from the same state. We know each other well. And I think he was an excellent pick by Leader Jeffries. So the framework has been set. I would say the thing that the CCP fears most is bipartisan support against China. And I think we have a real opportunity on the Select Committee to be engaged on a number of these issues."
LaHood was elected to the House in 2015 after serving four years in the Illinois State Senate and more than nine years as a State and Federal Prosecutor. In addition to his role on the newly-created Select Committee, he serves on the House Intelligence Committee and is Co-Chair of the U.S.-China Working Group, along with U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02). He also serves on the Ways & Means Committee, and noted that Chairman Gallagher has asked him to focus at least part of his efforts as a member of the Select Committee on studying the economic relationship that the United States has - and has not - developed with other countries in the Indo-Pacific region and what can be accomplished through U.S. leadership in trade.
"When I first got elected to Congress," he recounted, "I was a supporter in general of the framework for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. I didn't think it was perfect. There were many things that I would change. But creating a framework in the Indo-Pacific region to isolate China -- to write the rules of the road when it comes to trade and economics -- was very important to do. In the current geopolitics of the Indo-Pacific region, our allies are really craving our leadership there. Anytime you talk to folks from Japan or South Korea, or Australia, Philippines, Indonesia, or Vietnam, they're looking to the U.S. for leadership there. So what does that mean? I'm not under the illusion that we're going to create another TPP. But we have to think about what we're going to do from an economic standpoint to build relationships."
Making reference to the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity that the Biden Administration has put forth to begin building those relationships, LaHood was blunt. "I don't think it addresses market access," he said of the IPEF. "I don't think there are any enforcement mechanisms. It has really no teeth. It's really just a framework. And again, talking to our like-minded allies in the region, I think they're very frustrated with that."
LaHood also touched on how the relationship between the U.S. and China has changed in recent years, from one that is interested in more engagement to one that has become inherently more adversarial. "A lot of it goes back to what's happened in Ukraine," he noted. "Xi Jinping just spent two days in a lovefest in Moscow with Putin talking about continuing to work together and their unbreakable bond. I think many have been very perplexed and disappointed with China and the role they've taken in supporting Putin. They have not taken the next step [by providing] lethal aid. But obviously, we're watching closely to see what happens."
According to LaHood, the adversarial nature of the U.S.-China relationship has also been fueled by the "wolf warrior" approach to diplomacy that former Ambassador - and current Foreign Minister -- Wang Yi and other Chinese officials have exhibited in recent years.
"The first meeting he had on Capitol Hill was with Congressman Larsen and me," LaHood said, recalling the meeting he and his Co-Chair of the U.S. China Working Group had with then-Ambassador Yi. "He lectured us on how if Abraham Lincoln was alive today, he would think China's form of government was much more democratic than the United States. Congressman Larson and I just sat there perplexed."
"What I think is ironic -- going back to Ukraine for a second -- is if you look at what China has been focused on for the last 20 years, sovereignty has been such a big part of it -- sovereignty for Tibet, sovereignty for Xinjiang, sovereignty for Hong Kong, sovereignty for Taiwan. But in Ukraine, you have an independent sovereign country that was invaded illegally and unprovoked. And by the way, China had a lot of economic relationships with Ukraine at the time. And yet when the invasion happens, they side with Putin. It's very much a double-standard."
LaHood concluded by returning to America's economic relationship with China, and why navigating the complexities of this relationship will not only be one of the main challenges of the Select Committee, but an area where both Republicans and Democrats will have to speak with one voice and find common ground.
"A lot of my colleagues want to go back to a Cold War mentality with China," he observed. "They say we need to decouple. But the reality is the economic relationship with China is much different than it was during the Cold War. We didn't have an economic relationship with Russia like we do with China today."
"How do you intertwine that? I think finding that balance will be one of the most difficult things for us to do ... If we put proposals in place, I think we can help to isolate China economically. But it's really going to take a bipartisan effort moving forward."
To view the remarks of Rep. LaHood at yesterday's breakfast discussion, please click the link below: https://youtu.be/yOQEOR3ntfQ
The Ripon Society is a public policy organization that was founded in 1962 and takes its name from the town where the Republican Party was born in 1854 - Ripon, Wisconsin. One of the main goals of The Ripon Society is to promote the ideas and principles that have made America great and contributed to the GOP's success. These ideas include keeping our nation secure, keeping taxes low and having a federal government that is smaller, smarter and more accountable to the people.
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Original text here: https://riponsociety.org/2023/03/the-thing-that-the-ccp-fears-most-is-bipartisan-support-against-china/
[Category: Political]
NextGen America: Young Voters Respond to U.S. House of Representatives Passing the Parents Bill of Rights
SAN FRANCISCO, California, March 25 (TNStalk) -- NextGen America issued the following statement on March 24, 2023:
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In response to the House passing H.R.5, the Parents Bill of Rights Act, NextGen America President Cristina Tzintzun Ramirez released the following statement:
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"The Parents Bill of Rights Act is a racist, sexist, homophobic fear-based bill that would do nothing to protect America's children and families. This bill isn't about parents, it's about intensifying the Republicans' culture war, banning books, and wedging families against educators. Instead of working to make
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SAN FRANCISCO, California, March 25 (TNStalk) -- NextGen America issued the following statement on March 24, 2023:
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In response to the House passing H.R.5, the Parents Bill of Rights Act, NextGen America President Cristina Tzintzun Ramirez released the following statement:
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"The Parents Bill of Rights Act is a racist, sexist, homophobic fear-based bill that would do nothing to protect America's children and families. This bill isn't about parents, it's about intensifying the Republicans' culture war, banning books, and wedging families against educators. Instead of working to makeour education system better, Republicans have focused on this bill which provides no real support for our teachers or schools desperately looking for mental health resources, gun legislation, and wage increases.
"Criminalizing teachers and banning books is extreme, and this type of regulation would only pave the way for even more censorship and more erasure of Black people and LGBTQ+ families. As a mother, I know firsthand that my son is better off growing up in classrooms that encourage students to be themselves and learn about our full nation's history.
"This bill is dangerous legislation, and we urge the Senate to stop it in its tracks before it advances any further. Young voters are more civically engaged than ever, and we are paying close attention to who supports our vision for the future. As we look ahead to 2024, young people are ready to vote out anyone who holds us back from building the country we believe in."
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Original text here: https://nextgenamerica.org/press/young-voters-respond-to-u-s-house-of-representatives-passing-the-parents-bill-of-rights/
[Category: Political]
MomsRising: State Supreme Court Ruling on Capital Gains Tax a Win for Washington's Moms, Families and Economy
BELLEVUE, Washington, March 25 (TNStalk) -- MomsRising, an online and on-the-ground organization of more than 1 million mothers and their families, issued the following statement on March 24, 2023:
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Statement of leaders of MomsRising, the online and on-the-ground organization of more than one million mothers and their families, including 40,000 in Washington state, on today's state Supreme Court ruling upholding the Capital Gains Tax:
"Moms and caregivers across Washington applaud the state Supreme Court ruling upholding the capital gains tax, which provides the dedicated funding source
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BELLEVUE, Washington, March 25 (TNStalk) -- MomsRising, an online and on-the-ground organization of more than 1 million mothers and their families, issued the following statement on March 24, 2023:
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Statement of leaders of MomsRising, the online and on-the-ground organization of more than one million mothers and their families, including 40,000 in Washington state, on today's state Supreme Court ruling upholding the Capital Gains Tax:
"Moms and caregivers across Washington applaud the state Supreme Court ruling upholding the capital gains tax, which provides the dedicated funding sourcefor child care and early learning our state urgently needs. Washington's tax code has long been the most regressive in the nation, putting an unfair burden on the lowest income workers by requiring them to pay the most in state and local taxes. The capital gains tax, along with policies such as the Working Families Tax Credit, are beginning to change that in ways that will boost moms, families, businesses, and our state's economy. MomsRising and our members worked hand-in-hand with the child care and early learning community, organized labor, and others to mobilize moms, parents, and families across the state in support of the capital gains tax. Now the last hurdle to its implementation has been removed. This is a good day for Washington state."
-Statement of Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director and CEO, MomsRising
"The capital gains tax - an excise tax on excessive profits from sales of stock that will affect just 2% of Washingtonians - generates $500 million per year for education, including early learning and child care. Those funds are critical for addressing our state's early learning and child care crisis. Revenues from the capital gains tax made it possible for the state legislature to pass and fund the Fair Start for Kids Act, which is the largest investment in child care in our state's history. Quality, affordable child care allows moms and parents to hold onto the jobs that generate the income their families need to make ends meet and supports student success.
"We are just beginning to address decades of underinvestment in child care. Moms and families are rising for a just tax code and we won't stop here."
-Statement of Maggie Humphreys, Senior Campaign Director for Washington State Moms Force, MomsRising
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Original text here: https://www.momsrising.org/newsroom/state-supreme-court-ruling-on-capital-gains-tax-a-win-for-washingtons-moms-families-and
[Category: Sociological]
Human Rights Campaign: Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds Signs Discriminatory Bathroom Bill Into Law
DES MOINES, Iowa, March 25 (TNStalk) -- The Human Rights Campaign issued the following statement on March 23, 2023:
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The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) -- the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization -- condemned Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds for signing Senate File 482 into law. This bill bans trans students and school personnel from using school restrooms that match their gender identity.
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Human Rights State Legislative Director and Senior Counsel Cathryn Oakley issued the following statement today:
"Governor Reynolds has not relented
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DES MOINES, Iowa, March 25 (TNStalk) -- The Human Rights Campaign issued the following statement on March 23, 2023:
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The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) -- the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization -- condemned Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds for signing Senate File 482 into law. This bill bans trans students and school personnel from using school restrooms that match their gender identity.
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Human Rights State Legislative Director and Senior Counsel Cathryn Oakley issued the following statement today:
"Governor Reynolds has not relentedin her all-out war against transgender Iowans. By signing this bill into law on the heels of a dangerous ban on gender-affirming care, the Governor continues to jeopardize the health and wellbeing of all transgender youth across the state - while normalizing discrimination and hateful rhetoric. Transgender kids deserve the right to use the school restroom consistent with their gender identity. They deserve the right to be treated like human beings who deserve dignity and respect. Yet, Iowa lawmakers would rather use their political power to terrorize transgender kids in school than pass legislation that actually betters the lives of anyone."
Across the country, anti-equality politicians are working to pass bills to discriminate against and disrupt the lives of transgender people. Since the reviled HB2 was passed, and subsequently partially-repealed, in North Carolina, only three states - Tennessee, Alabama, and Oklahoma - have passed legislation mandating anti-transgender discrimination in bathrooms. Idaho has faced multiple lawsuits in recent years over anti-transgender legislation related to sports and identity documents.
While "bathroom bills'' were very popular in 2016, the international condemnation heaped upon HB2 dissuaded many other states from advancing their own legislation. The Associated Press projected that HB2 passed in 2016 could have cost North Carolina $3.76 billion over 10 years from loss of business opportunities and impact the lives of countless students. Furthermore, legislation attacking transgender refuses to serve the major interests and needs of communities and families, who now pay the price as the consequences of failed leadership across the state. Transgender youth are denied their right to a public education when they're preventing from accessing restroom facilities consistent with their gender identity, and "bathroom bills" are a violation of both Title IX and the U.S. Constitution.
So far in 2023, HRC is tracking more than 420 anti-LGBTQ+ bills that have been introduced in statehouses across the country. Approximately 180 of those bills would specifically restrict the rights of transgender people, the highest number of bills targeting transgender people in a single year to date.
This year, HRC is tracking:
* More than 100 bills that would prevent trans youth from being able to access age-appropriate, medically-necessary, best-practice health care; five have already become law, in Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, South Dakota, Utah, Iowa and Georgia.
* More bathroom ban bills filed than in any previous year,
* More than 80 curriculum censorship bills and 35 anti-drag performance bills.
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Original text here: https://www.hrc.org/press-releases/icymi-iowa-governor-kim-reynolds-signs-discriminatory-bathroom-bill-into-law
[Category: Political]
Human Rights Campaign: Extremist House Leaders Advance Discriminatory Bill Denying Millions of Parents the Right to Make Decisions For Their Kids, Picking and Choosing Which Families Have Rights and Which Don't
WASHINGTON, March 25 (TNStalk) -- The Human Rights Campaign issued the following statement on March 24, 2023:
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The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) -- the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization -- condemned H.R. 5 -- legislation that passed the U.S. House today - that aims to deny millions of parents the right to make decisions that are best for their children, and putting a straitjacket on teachers by continuing the trend of curriculum censorship seen in harmful, unnecessary bills passed in state legislatures recently. The bill -- which
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WASHINGTON, March 25 (TNStalk) -- The Human Rights Campaign issued the following statement on March 24, 2023:
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The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) -- the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization -- condemned H.R. 5 -- legislation that passed the U.S. House today - that aims to deny millions of parents the right to make decisions that are best for their children, and putting a straitjacket on teachers by continuing the trend of curriculum censorship seen in harmful, unnecessary bills passed in state legislatures recently. The bill -- whichpicks and chooses which families have rights and which don't -- has occupied the chamber's time while extremist House leaders continue neglecting the very real and urgent problems facing our schools, such as gun violence, teacher shortages and educational inequality.
The resolution also contains a provision that risks outing marginalized transgender and nonbinary youths to potentially unsupportive parents. This would endanger students instead of fulfilling school officials' obligation to make judgments on a case-by-case basis in the best interests of the students under their supervision.
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In response to the vote, David Stacy, Human Rights Campaign Government Affairs Director, released the following statement:
"The backers of this bill claim to be advancing it on behalf of parents, but when you actually listen to what parents want, it's clear that that's not what they're doing at all. This is purely about politics. All this bill would do is hamstring local school officials, teachers and parents from making important decisions about what's right for their students.
"These efforts to censor curriculum and force the outing of transgender and nonbinary students are borrowing from a discriminatory wave of bills sweeping the country -- a wave of bills, incidentally, that the majority of voters have not asked for and do not support. We expect that Senate leadership will choose to focus on the real issues confronting our students and our schools rather than taking up this empty, time-wasting piece of legislation."
The vote on H.R. 5 comes ahead of expected consideration in the coming weeks of H.R. 734, a bill to ban participation by transgender youth in school sports, highlighting the determination of the anti-equality majority in the House to attack a marginalized population rather than solving the actual problems facing the country.
Polling released by HRC in November, following the midterm election, showed that attacking transgender people was ineffective in terms of motivating voters. In the survey, HRC asked voters which specific issues motivated them to vote in 2022. Inflation (52 percent) and abortion (29 percent) ranked first and second on the list. Less than 5 percent identified gender affirming care for transgender youth or transgender participation in sports as issues motivating them to vote, last on this list.
Curriculum Censorship Bills Aim to Erase LGBTQ+ Identities
Anti-LGBTQ+ legislators are targeting LGBTQ+ youth by attempting to silence, erase, and isolate them through curriculum censorship, book bans, and other divisive tactics. But poll after poll indicates that Americans are overwhelmingly opposed to these efforts to punish and target LGBTQ+ youth. In 2020, eight of the 10 books that received the most challenges to use in libraries and schools were based on LGBTQ+ subjects or narratives, according to the American Library Association's annual ranking of books that were banned or protested in schools and public libraries.
By a 60-point margin, Americans oppose banning books in public schools. When described as "a growing push to remove certain books from schools across the country, including the graphic novel Maus about the Holocaust, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Color Purple, and 1984," more than three in four Americans oppose the banning of books in public schools (16 percent support - 76 percent oppose). Opposition is strong across partisanship, with opposition from almost four in five Republicans (78 percent) and about three in four Democrats and Independents (74 and 76 percent, respectively). [Navigator poll, 2/17-22]
Curriculum censorship policies aim to prevent the discussion of LGBTQ+ issues or people in education settings. This means teachers would be prevented from providing a safe, inclusive classroom for all students. Laws like those in Florida blocks teachers from talking about LGBTQ+ issues or people, further stigmatizing LGBTQ+ people and isolating LGBTQ+ kids. It also undermines existing protections for LGBTQ+ students. Other laws like those in Alabama bans any acknowledgement of sexual orientation or gender identity in classrooms from kindergarten through fifth grade.
LGBTQ+ kids already face real threats and obstacles. 86% of LGBTQ+ youth report they have been targets of bullying, harassment or assault at school. Studies have shown that bullying and harassment of LGBTQ+ youth contribute to high rates of absenteeism, dropout, adverse health consequences, and academic underachievement. A recent Trevor Project survey showed that a startling 85% of transgender or gender non-binary youth say their mental health has been negatively affected by the current wave of legislative attacks. "Don't Say Gay or Trans" and "Stop WOKE" are vile examples of state-sponsored discrimination, bullying and harassment. Studies clearly demonstrate the harms for LGBTQ+ youth mental health when they are denied affirming and protective school environments.
Poll after poll indicates that Americans are overwhelmingly opposed to these efforts to punish and target LGBTQ+ youth via curriculum censorship. Seventy-one percent of likely voters - including 66 percent of Independents and 64 percent of Republicans - believe that local school boards should not have the authority to ban books from school curriculums [Data for Progress poll, 2/11-13]. Based on National Parents Union's national polling and meetings with parents all over the country, Keri Rodrigues, co-founder and president of the organization, says restricting how teachers can talk about race or gender "is really at the bottom of the list" of parental priorities. [National Parents Union]
Voters rejected attacks on school curriculums in the 2022 midterm elections. The 2022 midterms showed that attacks on school curriculums -- specifically on critical race theory and so-called gender ideology -- largely were a dud in the general election. According to an HRC post-election poll, less than 5% of voters identified gender affirming care for trans youth or trans participation in sports as issues motivating them to vote, the last on the list. Anti-LGBTQ+ groups like American First Legal and American Principles Project -- led by people like Stephen Miller, known as the architect behind some of Trump's most xenophobic and anti-immigration policies -- poured tens of millions of dollars into advertising and mailers across the country, in support of candidates in Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas; those investments fell flat, as nearly all of their supported candidates lost their bids for elected office, including people like Tudor Dixon, who pushed anti-trans rhetoric in the days before pro-equality Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer clinched reelection victory.
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Original text here: https://www.hrc.org/press-releases/extremist-house-leaders-advance-discriminatory-bill-denying-millions-of-parents-the-right-to-make-decisions-for-their-kids-picking-and-choosing-which-families-have-rights-and-which-dont
[Category: Political]
FASB ANNOUNCES WINNER OF 2023 EMERGING SCHOLAR AWARD
NORWALK, Connecticut, March 25 (TNSawa) -- The Financial Accounting Standards Board issued the following news on March 24, 2023:
The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is pleased to announce the selection of Rachel Scott, a doctoral student in accounting at the University of Georgia, as the recipient of its 2023 Emerging Scholar Award.
The FASB's Emerging Scholar Award program was established in 2021 to garner additional interest among young PhD candidates in research relevant to accounting standard setting. From the submissions received, the award recognizes the proposed doctoral thesis
... Show Full Article
NORWALK, Connecticut, March 25 (TNSawa) -- The Financial Accounting Standards Board issued the following news on March 24, 2023:
The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is pleased to announce the selection of Rachel Scott, a doctoral student in accounting at the University of Georgia, as the recipient of its 2023 Emerging Scholar Award.
The FASB's Emerging Scholar Award program was established in 2021 to garner additional interest among young PhD candidates in research relevant to accounting standard setting. From the submissions received, the award recognizes the proposed doctoral thesistopic judged to be of the highest quality in terms of potential for a rigorous contribution to an issue of interest to accounting standard setting.
Ms. Scott is a fourth-year doctoral student at the J.M. Tull School of Accounting at the University of Georgia's Terry College of Business. Her dissertation addresses the revenue recognition standard (Topic 606) issued by the FASB in 2014, and specifically how that standard has affected the comparability of financial statements.
FASB Member Christine A. Botosan, who initiated the Emerging Scholars Award program, said, "We had many excellent submissions this year, but Rachel Scott's rose to the top on the strength and rigor of her research plan, and her commitment to the kind of work that is highly relevant to the practice of accounting today."
The proposed doctoral thesis topic submissions from nominated candidates were reviewed by a five-person selection committee that included three current and former FASB post-doctoral fellows and two members of the FASB staff.
For more information on the Emerging Scholar Award, visit http://www.fasb.org/academics.
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Original text here: https://www.fasb.org/page/getarticle?uid=fasb_Media_Advisory_03-24-23
[Category: Accounting]
ACLU OF FLORIDA STATEMENT ON PASSAGE OF UNIVERSAL PRIVATE SCHOOL VOUCHER BILL
TALLAHASSEE, Florida, March 25 (TNStalk) -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida issued the following statement on March 24, 2023:
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Yesterday, House Bill 1 (HB 1), the universal private school voucher bill, passed the Senate and was certified. It passed the House last week. The next and final stop for this bill to become law is the Governor's desk for signature. HB 1 will result in a devastating overhaul of Florida's public education system resulting in billions of taxpayer public education dollars being diverted to private schools.
The ACLU of Florida opposes this bill and urges
... Show Full Article
TALLAHASSEE, Florida, March 25 (TNStalk) -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida issued the following statement on March 24, 2023:
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Yesterday, House Bill 1 (HB 1), the universal private school voucher bill, passed the Senate and was certified. It passed the House last week. The next and final stop for this bill to become law is the Governor's desk for signature. HB 1 will result in a devastating overhaul of Florida's public education system resulting in billions of taxpayer public education dollars being diverted to private schools.
The ACLU of Florida opposes this bill and urgesthe Governor to veto it.
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Tiffani Lennon, ACLU of Florida's executive director, responded to yesterday's final passage of the bill with the following:
"Public schools serve everyone. Private schools pick and choose which students to accept, often to the detriment of lower income families.
"Make no mistake, if Gov. DeSantis signs this bill into law, Floridian students and families will suffer the consequences. The result will be a massive defunding of Florida's public schools, allowing billions in taxpayer dollars to be diverted from public schools to unregulated private religious schools. Our public schools are already suffering and need more resources, not less.
"Our taxpayer dollars should not be used to subsidize wealthy families, and finance private schools and the corporations that own and control these entities. This will devastate the future of public education in Florida and the detrimental consequences will be far-reaching, especially for communities of color, and low-income families that depend on the public school system.
"Supporters of this bill like to pretend that this is about 'school choice,' but once again, the only people that will have a 'choice' are those with the money to choose. Again, DeSantis puts his own views ahead of working Floridians.
"Unlike public schools, private voucher schools do not have the same obligations as public schools to protect students from harassment and discrimination. They can --and do-- discriminate against students based on religion, gender, LGBTQ+ status, disability, academic achievement, and disciplinary history. Many religious schools that receive taxpayer-funded vouchers also discriminate during the hiring and admissions process.
"Private religious voucher schools have also been known to impose creationism teachings in science class and mandate religious worship in the curriculum in the form of chapel, daily prayer, or daily scriptural readings.
"While parents have a right to direct the religious education of their children and to send their children to religious schools, they are not entitled to religious education provided at taxpayer expense. We urge the Governor to veto this legislation."
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Original text here: https://www.aclufl.org/en/press-releases/aclu-florida-statement-passage-universal-private-school-voucher-bill
[Category: Law/Legal]
