AU denounces private school voucher scheme in reconciliation bill

Americans United for Separation of Church and State’s President and CEO Rachel Laser issued the following statement in response to Congress forcing the first-ever national private school voucher scheme into the budget reconciliation bill. The voucher would funnel untold and uncapped billions in federal taxpayer money to private, predominantly religious schools. 

Private school voucher scheme advances Project 2025’s Christian Nationalist agenda

“The American people don’t like vouchers, which is why this harmful provision received bipartisan opposition. But President Trump and a majority in Congress ignored the will of the people and hatched the nation’s first national private school voucher scheme, advancing a Christian Nationalist agenda called for in Project 2025.

“Public funds belong in public schools, which are open to all and educate 90% of America’s students. With this voucher, Trump and Congress will divert billions of taxpayer dollars to private religious schools that indoctrinate and can discriminate against students and their families based on the schools’ beliefs.

“The separation of church and state means that we each should get to decide how and whether to support religion. It also protects the independence of religious schools. Yet this voucher program opens the door to the federal government’s regulation of private, religious schools.

“Private school vouchers don’t just trample our religious freedom – they also don’t work, breed fraud, foster discrimination, and enrich the wealthy. We need a national recommitment to keep church and state separate – our public schools and our democracy depend on it.”

Faith community opposed vouchers in reconciliation bill

More than 80 faith community organizations, denominations, and congregations representing 3.6 million people and 355 individual faith leaders sent letters to Congress explaining their strong opposition to the proposal because this private school voucher program would violate the foundational principle of religious freedom; benefit the wealthy while harming public schools, students and communities; and undermine the work of houses of worship by disincentivizing charitable giving.