School Choice Myth: Vouchers Are Too Expensive For Taxpayers
Posted on September 18, 2017 by
Mark Muehl
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School Choice,
SGO
Choice scholarships (vouchers) are a good deal for Indiana taxpayers.Opponents of school choice argue that choice scholarships are too expensive for taxpayers. But the fact is public schools use more tax dollars per student than private schools, making the School Choice Scholarship a better use of taxpayer money.Public-school costs are on the rise, increasing from an average of $10,969 per student in 2011 to $11,843 per student in 2016. Because the average cost to educate a child in a private school in Indiana is around $6,600, and because choice scholarships never pay that full cost, school choice saves tax dollars.Each Indiana Choice Scholarships covers only 50 to 90 percent of the average cost of private school tuition in Indiana, costing much less per student than public schools.The average Choice Scholarship value in 2016–17 for 90 percent was $5,618 and for 50 percent was $3,032, far less than the $11,843_ average cost per student in our public schools.The math still works even when a student receives the maximum choice scholarship amount. Students from lower-income families—those who are eligible for 100 percent free or reduced lunches—can receive a choice scholarship for no more than 90 percent of their public school’s per-pupil funding. Indiana Choice Scholarships are always less than public-school costs. Choice scholarships return high value for the taxpayer’s dollar. Studies in other states have also shown that vouchers save money when compared with costs to educate the same child in a public school. In the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, Robert Costrell studied the financial results of using Choice Scholarships and found that in 2008, vouchers are providing an estimated benefit of $32 million.To this equation, we must also add the value of giving parents a choice. Indiana’s Choice Scholarship Program lets parents decide where their child will attend school—and where the child’s educational dollars go.