House approves voucher bill

Parents of special education students are a giant step closer to receiving tax dollars to help pay private school tuition.

Following a 90-minute debate Friday, the House approved the "Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarships" bill, named after a 5-year-old boy attending the Carmen B. Pingree School for Children with Autism.

"I'm overwhelmed," an emotional Cheryl Smith, Carson's mother, said following the House's 43-29 vote. "This bill is going to help so many families."

The House was considered HB115's toughest sell — but the governor might be even tougher.

The House Education Committee nearly tabled the bill with a tie vote, then voted to hold the bill.

Things are expected to go a little more smoothly in the Senate, which last year overwhelmingly approved a bill that would provide tax credits to anyone wanting to switch from public to private schools — a similar measure with much broader implications.

"I think it's got a good chance of passage in the Senate," said Majority Whip John Valentine, R-Orem. "There were enough senators last time willing to try tuition tax credits that it appears to me there would be sufficient support for that particular scholarship voucher."

But Gov. Olene Walker "has some serious concerns" about the bill, spokeswoman Amanda Covington said. She's concerned the bill singles out a single group for help, at the potential expense of others. She also questions whether the bill would put Utah in a sticky situation with the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

Such issues are reiterated by the Utah Education Association and advocates for people with disabilities.

"We're disappointed" in the House action, said UEA President Pat Rusk, who favors studying the issues before creating law. "We've been able to meet the needs of deaf children, of blind children (and others). We should have been able to sit down and see how we can meet the needs of these parents."

HB115, sponsored by Reps. Morgan Philpot, R-Sandy, and Merlynn Newbold, R-South Jordan, would offer a government voucher for students with an array of disabilities, including speech or hearing impairments, traumatic brain injury or autism.

Scholarships would be worth between $3,225 and $5,375, depending on the severity of the student's disability. That comes out to be 1.5 to 2.5 times the value of the WPU ($2,150).

The original bill had the scholarship floor at 1.73 times the WPU.