Sandoval makes $60M pledge to ESA program for ‘generations to come’

The Education Savings Account program got a $60 million commitment from Gov. Brian Sandoval during his State of the State address Tuesday night.

Between 8,000 and 9,000 preliminary applications have been filed so far, state officials said.

The program, passed in the last legislative session, would be funded over two years: $25 million in fiscal 2018 and $35 million in fiscal 2019. Under the program, parents and families would be eligible to take about $5,100 of the per pupil funding to send their children to private schools. Families could also use the money for home school expenses.

Sandoval in his budget proposal called the program “one of the most significant school choice measures in Nevada’s history.” He added that it is aimed at “transforming our state’s education system for generations to come.”

After Tuesday’s address, State Treasurer Dan Schwartz issued a statement responding to the ESA funding proposals.

“We, of course, appreciate the Governor including $60 million towards funding ESAs in his remarks today,” Schwartz said. “The number is low; especially considering all those parents that we believe will apply once the uncertainty is removed. The Treasurer’s Office looks forward to working with the Governor and the Legislature in making parental choice a reality and improving K-12 education in Nevada.”

Where the money to fund the program will come from was not immediately clear because exact proposed expenditures have not been released for this biennial budget. But Sandoval’s proposal represents additional spending on top of the $2.81 billion allocation for K-12 in 2015.

The law, known as SB302, was challenged in courts by families. The state Supreme Court ruled in September 2016 that the program was constitutional but the original proposed funding mechanism, which took money out of the same fund distributing money to traditional public schools, was not.

The state constitution requires “the legislature to set apart or assign money to be used to fund the operation of the public schools, to the exclusion of all other purposes.”

Since the court ruling, Sandoval repeatedly said he planned to find a new funding source for the program. Meanwhile, the state treasurer’s office continued to accept applications, drawing protest from those who opposed the program.

The families that sued sent a cease-and-desist letter in December, saying Schwartz’s acceptance of the applications violated the injunction order.

Last week, a District Court judge approved a motion to change the injunction, giving the state treasurer’s office clearance to keep accepting applications.

“Our office is excited to continue to implement Nevada’s ESA program, we’re incredibly excited and relieved for Nevada parents that there’s clarity on the constitutionality of the program as it moves forward and we look forward to the legislative session and Governor Sandoval’s leadership to find funding for the program,” Grant Hewitt, Schwartz’s chief of staff, said in a statement Friday.

Contact Meghin Delaney at 702-383-0281 or mdelaney@reviewjournal.com. Follow @MeghinDelaney on Twitter.