But voucher supporters met Wednesday to challenge that point.

"All of the money that is currently in public education is going to stay there with fewer children," said State Board of Education member Mark Cluff, one of three board members who support Referendum 1. "The local school board can decide how they spend this extra money — be it increasing salaries or lowering class sizes."

Cluff did say that after five years that money will no longer be in the schools — but also said the districts can use those five years to plan and to adjust as needed.

Utah's voucher fight has attracted attention from various outside groups, including Arizona's largest teachers union. The union is joining the battle inside Utah, asking volunteers to participate in a telephone tree and speak to Utah voters ahead of the Nov. 6 vote.

Both sides have been pouring millions of dollars donated by out-of-state organizations into the debate. Each side believes that if the voucher program is upheld in Utah, it will quickly spread to other states.

The state's primary pro-voucher group, Parents for Choice in Education, says it's not surprised that donations from other states are pouring in and that teachers in Arizona are mobilizing to call Utah voters.

"We know that the main opponent of this referendum is the NEA, so we're not surprised they've had out-of-state help from the beginning. I think that this referendum is threatening to members of the national union and in teachers unions in other states," said spokeswoman Camden Hubbard. "It offers (parents) an alternative. It offers them an option to do something about those rare deficient public school teachers. Sadly, the unions are too often in favor of protecting the jobs of those teachers at the expense of students."

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Contributing: Associated Press
E-mail: terickson@desnews.com