There is a new voucher initiative being proposed in the State of Connecticut. Sometimes referred to as scholarships, certificates, portability, or choice programs, these funding schemes are in fact vouchers . Each voucher proposal differs somewhat in purpose, operation, outcomes, and consequences, but ultimately each paves the way to a private school system funded by taxpayers yet free of public control and oversight. Since 1955 when economist Milton Friedman first proposed the free market voucher model, nearly a dozen distinct voucher proposals have surfaced. Most proposals would provide funding that could be used at private and parochial schools by transferring public tax dollars to nonpublic schools for tuition and fees.
Some proposals even offer funds for home schooling.
Although key congressional leaders maintain that passage of a private and religious voucher bill is one of their top priorities, many Americans continue to oppose vouchers. During the past three decades, voters in 20 states have defeated voucher and tuition tax credit referenda. The most recent, a 1996 Washington state voucher ballot initiative, was rejected by an overwhelming 65 percent of voters. One of the many shortcomings of vouchers is their exorbitant cost. No matter how you dress it up, how long you delay it, or what you call it, a voucher is a voucher.