Stop the PRICE Act Alabama!
Church, private and home school students currently enjoy a nearly unlimited number of school choices in Alabama. However, an effort is underway to put nonpublic schools in this state back under state control. The current legislative initiative is known as the 'PRICE Act'. The act is deceptively called 'school choice'. If adopted, tax money would be used to entice families of nonpublic school students to participate in a new state-run regulatory program. Proponents claim the program will be 'voluntary,' but once the regulatory scheme is in place it will invariably be expanded. If successful, church, private and home school students will once again be subjected to the control of the government. This agenda needs to be stopped!
With the Sheckels...
...come the Shackles
Government-controlled 'School Choice' is an Oxymoron
WEALTH REDISTRIBUTION
The PRICE Act would take tax money that was taken from others, involuntarily, by force and redistribute it to a relatively small special interest group. This is essentially 'welfare for the wealthy'. Money that would have been used to build public schools would go instead to building exclusive private schools, where only small segment of society would benefit. The Alabama Constitution prohibits state money from going directly to sectarian or parochial schools. The PRICE Act attempts to circumvent this prohibition by using a play on words; saying that the money would go to the families and not directly to private religious schools. This claim is dishonest. It does not accurately reflect how the money flow. In truth, the money would in fact go from the ESA account, directly to the vendors (eg, religious schools and publishers of religious material).
THE GLOBALIST AGENDA
The idea of using tax money to secure government control over nonpublic schools was not 'home grown'. The plan is laid out in numerous articles published by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). One such article is titled, "Regulating Public-Private Partnerships, Governing Non-State Schools - An Equity Perspective." The UN publication addresses methods it says governments should use to assure 'equity' within nonpublic school settings. It expressly encourages use of government-funded 'school choice' programs to bring about “centralization and control of the school choice and admissions procedures.” Under a section titled, “Autonomy, Evaluation, and Accountability,” the report proposes to bring private, subsidized schools under the the same "monitoring and evaluation framework" that is used for the public sector. It goes on to say that “regulatory reforms must clearly define what public interest in education is and fix the rules under which private providers may participate.” Citing the UN’s "Sustainable Development Goals" known as UN Agenda 2030, (the “master plan for humanity”), the report claims that “the State remains the duty-bearer of education as a public good.” Parents are described in the UNESCO report as mere “stakeholders,” or even, “vested interests,” whose influence must be overcome by the government. The report concludes by saying that "government testing requirements" play a strategic role in assuring that "all publicly-funded schools, independently of their ownership, are correctly aligned with quality standards and also with the equity goals and objectives set by the government.”
STRINGS ARE ATTACHED
The state will own and control the money. Parents will never touch the money. Only approved purchases will be allowed. If parents do not spend the money, it will 'disappear' from their pseudo account. Even worse, the Education Savings Account (ESA) fund will operate just like Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). China is currently experimenting with a similar incentive program where digital money is given to enrollees on the condition that they spend it within a short timeframe, otherwise the money is extinguished and wiped from the account. This is called 'digital grooming'.
NEW REGULATIONS WILL FOLLOW
There has never been any Government regulation that increased freedom or liberty. The school choice bill creates a new state agency within the Alabama Department of Revenue (DOR – the tax collector). The agency will have authority to implement rules and regulations to carry out and enforce the law. By definition, regulations limit choices. The legislature can and will add new conditions in the future, down the road; there is no way to prevent this.
PARENTS LOSE CONTROL
Parents will have no control over the money, and no direct control over program administration. The act would create an 'advisory board' which would include some parents. But the board would have no control over policies the administrative agency adopts. Further, withdrawals from the ESA fund can only be done using a smartphone app. This will give the state control over and access to all transactions.
VOLUNTARY Enticement IS A RUSE
All laws operate under the concept of 'voluntary' compliance. So, saying that participation in the ESA program would be 'voluntary," is misleading at best. For example, purchasing a child's car seat is voluntary. But you can only buy one that complies with federal regulations. In fact, you can't even sell or donate a car seat that doesn't comply with current standards. And those standards have changed over time. While the PRICE Act may be voluntary at first, it would put into place a regulatory scheme which would reward goods and service providers to tailor their products to comply with state regulations. Ultimately, even students who are not enrolled in the ESA program will find that their options have been limited to only those which comply. Even families who do not enroll will find that only compliant goods and services will be available for purchase. And new conditions will be added down the road. These could include such things as testing and assessments standards. Schools could even be forced to adopt diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies in order to remain on the approved vendor list. Eventually, the voluntary option will be effectively eliminated, and the only choices that will be available to private, church and home school families will be those which comply with the state rules.
CONTROLLED CHOICES ARE NOT REAL CHOICES
When tax money is used to secure control over any private entity it is done with the objective of controlling and regulating the conduct of the entity. As it concerns school choices, only approved vendors will be allowed to receive payment from the state fund. This means that all curriculum vendors, and all service providers, will be required to comply with policies established by the state regulatory agency. Parents will have no control over the state's choices. Ultimately, vendors and service providers will tailor their products and services to comply with state requirements. It will not be profitable for vendors to produce both compliant and non-compliant products and services. Consequently, non-participants will find that their choices have been limited and revised to comply with the state requirements, and they will have access to only those products and services approved by the state.
Money is used to MANIPULATE decisions
Once families become accustomed to the subsidy, the money will serve to influence and control their school choices. The money flow will also influence business decisions made by vendors service providers. This is not a "free market model" by any stretch of the imagination. This is the model used by fascist and totalitarian regimes; and is contrary to fundamental economic principles associated with true freedom of choice. Even worse, state manipulation is contrary to the essence of Christian authority over the affairs of one's family and children. How many church schools – and parents – will have the Biblical integrity and moral fiber to resist nonbiblical policies imposed on them by the state-run program, versus how many will be tempted to compromise core tenets of Christianity?