Citizens for Strong Schools v. Florida State Board of Education

Litigation: Challenging adequacy of public school funding and alleging that “The Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program,” enacted in 2001, and “John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program,” enacted in 1999, have a negative impact on public school funding and performance.  Challenging adequacy of funding for public education: Certain Commissioners of the 1998 Constitution Revision Commission, Education Law Center, National Law Center of Homelessness and Poverty Challenging assertion that school choice programs harm funding for public education: EdChoice, Florida State Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Foundation for Excellence in Education, Several Members of the 1998 Constitution Revision Commission, United Cerebral Palsy Association of Miami, Urban League of Greater Miami

Outcomes: On January 4, 2019, the Florida Supreme Court rejected a claim that the state did not adequately fund education, marking the end of a 10-year litigation effort. The high court also preserved Florida’s school choice programs due to plaintiffs’ failure to adequately preserve their arguments throughout the litigation. The high court affirmed two lower court rulings (Citizens for Strong Schools, Inc. v. Florida State Board of Education, No. CA-4534 (Fla. 2d. Jud. Cir. May 24, 2016; and Citizens for Strong Schools v. Florida State Board of Education, No. 1D16-2862 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. Dec. 13, 2017) holding that plaintiffs had no standing to sue regarding the tax-credit scholarship program, and that Florida’s school choice programs did not divert state funding or have any detrimental effect on Florida’s system of public schools. Notwithstanding the Florida Supreme Court’s prior ruling against vouchers (Bush v. Holmes, 886 So. 2d 340 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004), aff’d on other grounds, 919 So. 2d 392 (Fla. 2006)), the Court also held that the McKay voucher program was beneficial and constitutional.

Why it Matters: In extensive testimony at the trial court level (including dozens of witnesses and over 5,000 exhibits) it was revealed that Florida’s education system had improved over twenty years of funding that challengers deemed inadequate and detrimental. There was a clear showing that funding levels do not predict academic success. The court agreed with and quoted the trial court, which found that challengers, “failed to establish any causal relationship between any alleged low student performance and a lack of resources,” and that there was “no negative effect on the uniformity or efficiency of the State system of public schools due to these choice programs.”

Effects: More than 140,000 students were using tax credit scholarships and McKay vouchers to attend the school of their choice when the Florida Supreme Court ruled against challengers. The court preserved the right of parents to use educational choice funding for their children’s education, as chosen by the parents.

Amicus Brief