More 'Awesome' Bipartisan Support for School Choice in North Carolina

Families of children with special needs in North Carolina have new hope today, thanks to a new tax credit measure passed by the legislature with strong bipartisan support and awaiting approval by the governor.

House Bill 344 passed the House by a 94-20 margin and a 44-5 margin in the Senate. A total of 65 percent of Democratic legislators supported the measure, and Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina (PEFNC) led the effort to generate support for the proposal, rallying thousands of parents on behalf of school choice.

If enacted, North Carolina would become the 14th state or jurisdiction in the United States to provide parents with access to private schools through school vouchers or scholarship tax credits.

Here's PEFNC president Darrell Allison (emphasis ours):

With this strong showing of support within and beyond the legislature, our hope is that this is enough compelling evidence for our governor to support this measure with her signature. With a stroke of her pen, thousands of families will be able to afford placing their special needs children in educational environments that meet all of their needs. Pending the governor’s approval, this will be the first piece of K-12 legislation that gives parents statewide choice regarding public and private education in North Carolina; in a word, awesome.

This comes just a week after the legislature voted to eliminate the state’s 100-school cap on charter schools, a measure that also passed with strong bipartisan support.

Here's the full release about today's news from PEFNC.

- American Federation for Children | Alliance for School Choice, MAG