Vouchers or not, families will be fine

Their TV ads talk about how the new voucher law is a failed experiment (there's that "fail" word again — death in any education context), how the voucher program could grow to equal $71 million in 13 years, as every student in a Utah private school will be eligible for vouchers. But it doesn't say that public schools will still get some money, for up to five years, for a public school student who goes to a private school.

In any case, one would think that public education and families will fail if vouchers is adopted.

Or one will think that Utah families will fail if they don't get vouchers.

How does one really find out about vouchers?

Well, one can read the Utah Voter Information Pamphlet. It is the state's attempt to have some logical debate on both sides of the issue. You can get one at your local library. Or you can read it online at leaveyourprint.com.

There is an officially impartial analysis of the new voucher law in the pamphlet.

I learned from reading the pamphlet that a family of eight making $150,000 a year can still get $1,000 per student in tuition vouchers. And you can get the voucher until you are 21, giving you three extra years to graduate from high school.

So, assuming you had kids ranging in ages from 5 to 20, you could get $6,000 to send all your kids to private school, even if you make $150,000 a year.

You know, if the Democrats proposed such a social program, one would think that the Republicans would scream. Why in the world are we giving $6,000 toward a private education for a family making $150,000 a year when we are already taxing Utahns thousands of dollars for a public education?

However, on the other side, why are we complaining about vouchers when we're taking six kids out of the public schools, but the public schools are still getting thousands of dollars as if those six kids were still in public school, when in fact they are not? It's like paying farmers not to grow a crop — and we've been doing that for decades, so it must make sense.

But, hey, as the TV ads say, if vouchers pass Nov. 6, Utah families will be in peril. And if vouchers fail Nov. 6, Utah families will be in peril.

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Deseret Morning News political editor Bob Bernick Jr. may be reached at bbjr@desnews.com