HARRISBURG — Sen. Dawn Keefer (R-31) voiced strong opposition to a bill that threatens school choice and unfairly penalizes cyber charter school students and families.
“Senate Bill 315 represents nothing short of a devastating blow to school choice in our commonwealth,” said Keefer. “At a time when families are seeking alternatives to failing traditional schools, this legislation doubles down on a broken system, punishing innovative options like cyber charter schools while rewarding inefficiency and underperformance.”
The legislation provides an additional $50 million to the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) for low-income families but imposes a $175 million cut on the 65,000 students attending public cyber charter schools, in addition to last year’s $200 million reduction. It also allows additional deductions from tuition allocations that should accompany students to their chosen cyber charters.
Adding to the burden, the bill introduces complex new administrative requirements for cyber charters, all in the name of “accountability,” while traditional brick-and-mortar public schools — sitting on more than $13 billion in reserves — are set to receive roughly $1 billion more in funding without new accountability measures.
The budget allocates $120 million for mental health services in public schools, a role Keefer says schools are ill-equipped to provide while counties responsible for similar services remain flat-funded, creating competition for scarce resources.
“Schools cannot be all things to all people,” said Keefer. “They lack the capacity, resources and liability to take on every role, and by forcing them into these positions, we are setting them up to fail. We must refocus on education and rely on community experts for additional services.”
Supporting school choice is essential to giving families real options and empowering students to pursue an education that meets their needs and helps them succeed.
CONTACT: Crystal Patterson, 717-432-1730