Sen. Mike Lee has introduced legislation that would increase tax exemptions for states adopting school choice programs. When he introduced the bill, Lee said, “It is the fundamental right of parents to choose the educational path that is most suitable for their children.” Lee is correct. However, the carrot and stick approach that he is proposing does not enshrine that right into law.
Rights pertain to action—the freedom to act as one deems best, so long as one respects the freedom of others to do the same. In regard to education, this means the freedom of parents to choose the school that they think best for their child. Lee’s bill is, at best, a small, tentative step towards education freedom.
Even under the best school choice programs, the government remains heavily involved, particularly in regard to funding. No matter what form they take, school choice programs are funded by tax dollars—money that is forcibly taken from parents and non-parents alike. School choice programs certainly provide parents will more education options, but so long as those programs are funded by tax dollars, parents cannot enjoy true education freedom.
Education freedom involves much more than enabling parents to choose their child’s school. It also means enabling parents to choose how their money is spent. Using tax dollars to fund school choice programs is akin to allowing parents to have one arm free while tying the other arm behind their back. If we want to protect the right of parents to choose their child’s school, then we must simultaneously protect their right to spend their money as they choose. Lee’s carrot and stick approach doesn’t do this.
Lee’s bill would leave state governments—not parents—in control of education. And, in states that do not enact school choice programs, “the fundamental right of parents” to choose their child’s school remains unprotected.
I do not know Lee’s position on “states’ rights,” but his bill is consistent with that mistaken idea. States’ rights advocates hold that states should be allowed to enact whatever laws “the people” demand, even when those laws violate the rights of individuals. Lee’s bill would allow states to continue their rights-violating control of education.