The real choice
The Nevada Supreme Court has announced it will hear oral arguments on at least one of the lawsuits filed against the Educational Savings Accounts (ESA), Nevada’s broadest-in-the-nation school voucher law, on July 8. The arguments relate to a lawsuit filed by parents of Nevada students who object to the voucher program because it violates the state’s constitutional provision of uniform funding. Carson City District Court Judge James Wilson agreed with the parents, but an appeal of his decision was filed, asking the Supreme Court to overturn it.
A district court judge in Las Vegas, Eric Johnson, dealt a harsher blow to advocates of public education when he recently ruled in favor of the ESA. Johnson ruled against a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for the Separation of Church and State that argues the ESA violates Article 11, Section 10 of the state’s constitution because it takes publicly funded education dollars away from public schools, funneling it to private religious schools under the guise of parental choice.
It’s worth noting that Judge Johnson was appointed last year by Governor Sandoval, who signed the law creating the voucher program, a bill championed by Republicans that failed to attract even one Democratic vote. Johnson is currently running to retain his appointed seat after being chosen by Sandoval to fill a Reno News & Review - The real choice - Left Foot Forward - Opinions - June 16, 2016: