The chance for real School Choice in 2022 died with the Legislative crossover date when House Republican leadership chose to leave House Bill 982 - The Educational Freedom Act - on the desk of the Education Committee Chairman, refusing to allow a vote.
The only School Choice bill allowed through was weak and riddled with government strings and strict eligibility requirements that leave most Virginia families unable to access any educational funds at all. Weak bills are worse than no bill at all. It allows anti-school choice politicians to vote for it, and then they tell voters they support School Choice.
It was angry parents wanting more control over their own children's education who gave Republicans a majority in the House and put a Republican in the Governor's seat, and yet Republican leadership decided to throw them nothing but crumbs.
Why?
Maybe because for all of their campaign rhetoric, these ‘republicans’ support the government monopoly on education. Or maybe they are too afraid to fight. Either way, the result is the same.
Hint: The 2023 State Election is coming.
2023
This session, we’ve hit the ground running! Delegate Marie March is our new School Choice bill champion. She has introduced HB 1396, and she WILL fight for it.
Parents around Virginia continue to battle their local school boards over inappropriate lessons and materials, learning loss, and bathroom policies that put our children in jeopardy. We pay gobs of money in property taxes and income taxes and yet see no relief.
The government monopoly on education makes private school prohibitively expensive, charter schools are few and far between, and teachers have no Job Choice.
It is so disheartening to see Republican leadership refuse to stand up for Virginia parents in a way that would really make a difference.
Virginia for Educational Freedom has no problem holding politicians accountable for broken promises and backroom political games. We understand that this is the only way to end the status quo of do-nothingism down in Richmond.
Share our website with your friends and family, and encourage them to sign our School Choice petition below:
We, the undersigned, demand that our elected servants vote for true school choice. They are our children, it is our tax money and it can only morally be our choice.
Government schools have failed Virginia and we demand the right to decide what is best for our children.
If you instead vote to continue to allow government bullies to dictate what schools our children attend and what schools my tax money funds, we will work tirelessly to unseat you in the next election.