CHOICE PROPOSALS DIFFERENT PATHS TO SAME GOAL

JEFFERSON CITY -- Sen. Peter Kinder's two school choice amendments sponsored take different paths to the same goal.

The longer version, SJR 17, is identical to one considered last year and includes specific details of the amount of scholarships that would be available to parents to use at private schools.

It mentions a fixed scholarship of one-half the per-pupil public education costs for parents wanting to send their children to a private school that participates in the scholarship program.

SJR-16, a much shorter version, affirms the right of parents to choose the school their children attend but details would be drafted later by enabling legislation.

The shorter version states:

"Any parent of any child entitled to a free education may choose any school or educational program, public or private, including home schooling, meeting the requirements of general law, for the education of the child. Nothing contained in this constitution, nor the laws of this state, shall be deemed or interpreted to prohibit the General Assembly from exercising its power to enforce this section by appropriate legislation, including non-discriminatory provisions to make scholarship grants or tax credits for educational expenditures available, on either a statewide or a local option basis, to the parents of all children entitled to such a free education."

Kinder, R-Cape Girardeau, said the longer version has adequate safeguards to prevent the state from interfering in private schools. Any additional regulation of private schools would require a three-fourths vote of the General Assembly.

Private schools would have to decide whether to accept students through the scholarship program.

Both of Kinder's approaches would require approval from voters because they are constitutional amendments.