Ohio is preparing its appeal of last month’s trial court ruling saying the program that offers taxpayer-paid vouchers for families to use at private schools is unconstitutional. The appeal will be filed Wednesday in the 10th District Court of Appeals, with the Republican-dominated Ohio Supreme Court likely the final stop for the case.
“We do not agree with the decision. That's why they make appeals courts," said Attorney General Dave Yost. "We will be filing our merits appeal on Wednesday explaining in some detail why we believe the trial court erred.”
Yost and other voucher supporters held a press conference not only to announce Wednesday's appeal, but to make it clear the trial judge’s order keeps the EdChoice voucher program running while the court case goes on. And they encouraged families to apply for vouchers, which are available to anyone who wants them through an expansion of the program in the state budget in 2023.
On June 24, Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge Jaiza Page ruled on the argument from the coalition Vouchers Hurt Ohio that the state has created an unconstitutional second system of private schools through vouchers.
"The State may not fund private schools at the expense of public schools or in a manner that undermines its obligation to public education," Page wrote in her ruling. She also ordered the EdChoice can continue during litigation.
Tom Fischer from EdChoice Legal Advocates, the legal arm of the non-profit company EdChoice, said they’ll push back on the plaintiffs’ claims of the separate school system, and that the state has underfunded public schools.
“Our opponents operate under the mistaken impression that Ohio must choose between a robust public school system and a voucher program. But Ohio can and does have both," Fisher said. "Our opponents believe Ohio's children are mere conduits for funding for the public school system. They target children's scholarships, hoping that public schools will get that money. Instead, they need to remember that Ohio's education system is a system that serves students, not a system where students serve the system."
The Vouchers Hurt Ohio coalition fighting the EdChoice program has grown from around 100 districts initially to 308 now. That's around half of the state's public school districts. They've said they believe the constitution's language stating the state must secure a "thorough and efficient system of common schools" is clear and backs their case.
But Yost disagrees.
"There is really good precedent upholding the things that were found unconstitutional," Yost said. "I feel very confident over the course of this appeal that the legislature's action will be found to be lawful and constitutional and then will continue to operate in Ohio into the future."
