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ERIC Number: ED215421
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1982
Pages: 9
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
The Case Against Tuition Tax Credits.
Shannon, Thomas A.
Tuition tax credits for private elementary and secondary schools would be bad law, bad economics, and bad public policy. These points are made in this twenty-first chapter of a book on school law. Legal arguments against tax credits are based on a number of court decisions concerning church-state separation, particularly the Supreme Court decision in the "Nyquist" and "Sloan" cases. These decisions held that tuition tax credits for elementary and secondary students are unconstitutional. The economic arguments against tuition tax credits are based on the estimate that such a program would cost $2.5 billion annually and that this amount would probably increase each year. Furthermore, higher income families would be those to benefit most from the bill. Arguments from the standpoint of public policy contend that tuition tax credits would undermine America's traditional system of tuition-free public schools by encouraging a shift to private schools. The government should no more provide a private school tax credit than it should a private fire protection tax credit or a private police tax credit. Under tuition tax credits, every parent would subsidize private schools although many children could be denied enrollment. Finally, required regulation of private schools would be expensive. (Author/JM)
Not available separately; see EA 014 500.
Publication Type: Books; Legal/Legislative/Regulatory Materials
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: National Organization on Legal Problems of Education, Topeka, KS.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A