Wisconsin Democrats back school funding lawsuit

Listen to this article

Democratic lawmakers in the Wisconsin Legislature are siding with the parents and school districts who are suing them over inadequate school funding. Meanwhile, a group of parents who use private school choice programs are asking to join the suit on the opposite side.

Democrats on the state’s Joint Finance Committee submitted an intervening filing on April 13, saying they agree with arguments from several school districts, teachers’ unions and parents who in February sued the state Legislature and its Joint Finance Committee in Eau Claire County Circuit Court. The groups allege the state doesn’t provide enough funding for schools to meet constitutional requirements.

In a separate motion filed the same day, parents Olivia Jimenez and Anthony and Gina Ellis asked the court to add them as defendants in the case. The filing describes them as parents whose children are “direct and intended beneficiaries” of the Wisconsin and Racine parental choice programs.

The parents are seeking party status to defend Wisconsin’s school finance system “to the extent that it implicates” voucher programs, including the statewide Wisconsin Parental Choice Program, the Racine and Milwaukee parental choice programs, and the Special Needs Scholarship Program.

If they lose the ability to use the programs because of the lawsuit, they said, it will create a financial burden on their families and impede their ability to decide where their children go to school.

The parents are represented by attorney Daniel Suhr of the Center for American Rights in Chicago, as well as EdChoice Legal Advocates, an Indianapolis‑based organization that supports school choice.

The plaintiffs, represented by the Madison-based law firm Law Forward, are meanwhile asking the court to require the state to create a new funding system that meets constitutional requirements. Plaintiffs include the Green Bay Area Public School District, the state’s third largest school district, along with four other districts in Beloit, Eau Claire, Necedah and Adams-Friendship, as well as local teachers unions.

Democrats on the finance committee who are named as defendants include Sen. LaTonya Johnson of Milwaukee, Sen. Kelda Roys of Madison, Rep. Tip McGuire of Kenosha and Rep. Deb Andraca of Whitefish Bay.

In their intervening filing, the lawmakers distanced themselves from the Republicans who are also named as defendants and hold majority control of the budget-writing committee.

“Parents and educators should not have to sue the Legislature” to force recognition that Republicans have chosen to “systemically underfund our public schools across Wisconsin,” the Democrats said in a statement.

The lawmakers said they agreed with the core arguments of the lawsuit: that limits to how much revenue school districts can bring in and the rise of private school vouchers have left districts unable to provide an adequate public education.

The lawsuit also argues that school funding has not kept pace with rising costs, forcing districts to rely on voter-approved property tax referendums to help meet budget shortfalls.

“Public education is not uniform when the quality of a child’s education depends so heavily on local property values and referendum results,” the Democrats said. “That means access to school funding depends more on whether a community has the tax base and voter support to keep raising local dollars and less on actual students’ needs.”

The lawsuit additionally points to an increasing number of students with high needs whom districts cannot support without additional funding. The plaintiffs are asking the court to rule the current school funding system unconstitutional and for the court to implement a new state school funding system, unless the Legislature and governor do so.

Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee have not yet responded to the lawsuit. In a previous statement, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said they “will vigorously defend against this suit and are confident that the courts will soundly reject it.”

“This complaint is another meritless attempt by liberal activists to defund the State’s highly successful school-voucher program and interfere with the Legislature’s authority to fund public schools,” Vos said.