Judge Upholds Indiana School Voucher Law

Last updated on: January 13, 2012 at 10:52 pm by

Judge Upholds Indiana School Voucher Law 2012-01-13T22:52:57-07:00

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INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — A judge upheld Indiana’s school voucher law on Friday, rejecting opponents’ arguments that it unconstitutionally uses public money to support religion.

Marion Superior Court Judge Michael Keele said the School Choice Scholarship program doesn’t violate the state constitution because the state isn’t directly funding parochial schools. Instead, it gives scholarship vouchers to parents, who can choose where to use them. That was essentially the argument made by the program’s supporters.

Keele declined to block the law, saying it was “religion-neutral” and likely to be upheld.

About 4,000 children are enrolled in Indiana’s school voucher program, the nation’s largest.

Indiana State Teachers Association President Nate Schnellenberger said opponents would keep fighting the law.

“The ruling from the judge does not shake our confidence and it will be appealed,” he told The Associated Press.

But officials with the Institute for Justice, which represented two parents in the lawsuit that was brought by teachers and religious leaders backed by the Indiana State Teachers Association, said they believed the ruling would stand. Attorney Bert Gall said similar school voucher laws in Wisconsin and Ohio had been upheld, and the U.S. Supreme Court had also affirmed the constitutionality of vouchers.

“Today’s ruling is a resounding win for Indiana parents and students, and it is a major defeat for school choice opponents,” Gall said in a news release.

The Indiana attorney general’s office had no immediate comment.

Lawmakers approved the law during the 2011 session. Gov. Mitch Daniels signed it last May and it took effect at the start of the school year.

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Associated Press Writer Carrie Schedler in Indianapolis contributed to this report.

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