Editing School voucher (section)

====Political support====
Political support for school vouchers in the United States is mixed. On the left/right spectrum, conservatives are more likely to support vouchers. Some state legislatures have enacted voucher laws.  In [[New Mexico]], then-Republican [[Gary Johnson]] made school voucher provision the major issue of his second term as [[Governor of New Mexico|governor]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Clowes |first=George A. |date=October 1, 2000 |title=Better Education Does Make All the Difference: Governor Gary E. Johnson |url=http://www.heartland.org/schoolreform-news.org/Article/10881/Better_Education_Does_Make_All_the_Difference_Governor_Gary_E_Johnson.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110527080840/http://www.heartland.org/schoolreform-news.org/Article/10881/Better_Education_Does_Make_All_the_Difference_Governor_Gary_E_Johnson.html |archive-date=May 27, 2011 |access-date=November 14, 2010 |website=School Reform News |publisher=[[The Heartland Institute]]}}</ref> The federal government provided a voucher program for 7,500 residents of [[Washington, D.C.]], called the [[D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Washington Scholarship Fund |url=http://www.washingtonscholarshipfund.org/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120121010107/http://www.washingtonscholarshipfund.org/index.html |archive-date=January 21, 2012 |access-date=August 11, 2011 |publisher=Washington Scholarship Fund}}</ref> The program operated until in early March 2009, when congressional Democrats moved to close down the program and remove children from their voucher-funded school places at the end of the 2009/10 school year under the $410&nbsp;billion [[Omnibus Appropriations Act of 2009]]<ref>Under Title IV of H.R.1015</ref> which, as of March 7 had passed the House and was pending in the Senate. The Obama administration stated<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 4, 2009 |title=Secretary Duncan wants D.C. kids to keep vouchers |work=USA Today |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2009-03-04-duncan-vouchers_N.htm |access-date=August 11, 2011}}</ref> that it preferred to allow children already enrolled in the program to finish their schooling while closing the program to new entrants.  However, its preference on this matter was not strong enough to prevent the president from signing the bill.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 2, 2009 |title=Briefing by White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, 3/2/09 &#124; The White House |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the_press_office/Briefing-by-White-House-Press-Secretary-Robert-Gibbs-3/2/09/ |access-date=August 11, 2011 |website=[[whitehouse.gov]] |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

Whether or not the public generally supports vouchers is debatable. Majorities seem to favor improving existing schools over providing vouchers, yet as many as 40% of those surveyed admit that they do not know enough to form an opinion or do not understand the system of school vouchers.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Red Flags on Education: Lack of Knowledge About Vouchers |url=http://www.publicagenda.org/citizen/issueguides/education/publicview/redflags |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081227052407/http://www.publicagenda.org/citizen/issueguides/education/publicview/redflags |archive-date=December 27, 2008 |access-date=July 25, 2008 |website=Public Agenda Online}}</ref>

In November 2000, a voucher system proposed by [[Tim Draper]] was placed on the [[California]] ballot as Proposition 38. It was unusual among school voucher proposals in that it required neither [[accreditation]] on the part of schools accepting vouchers, nor proof of need on the part of families applying for them; neither did it have any requirement that schools accept vouchers as payment-in-full, nor any other provision to guarantee a reduction in the real cost of private school tuition. The measure was defeated by a final percentage tally of 70.6 to 29.4.

A statewide universal school voucher system providing a maximum tuition subsidy of $3,000 was passed in Utah in 2007, but 62% of voters repealed it in a statewide referendum before it took effect.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vouchers Killed |url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695225580,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071109045128/http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695225580,00.html |archive-date=November 9, 2007 |access-date=November 3, 2007 |website=[[Deseret News]]}}</ref> On April 27, 2011, [[Indiana]] passed a statewide voucher program, the largest in the U.S. It offers up to $4,500 to students with household incomes under $41,000, and lesser benefits to households with higher incomes. The vouchers can be used to fund a variety of education options outside the public school system.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 27, 2011 |title=Gov's Education Reform Passes |url=http://www.wishtv.com/dpp/news/politics/state_politics/keys-to-govs-education-reform-pass |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130022452/http://www.wishtv.com/dpp/news/politics/state_politics/keys-to-govs-education-reform-pass |archive-date=January 30, 2012 |access-date=April 28, 2011 |publisher=WISHTV News |df=mdy-all}}</ref> In March 2013, the [[Indiana Supreme Court]] found that the program does not violate the state constitution.<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 26, 2013 |title=Indiana court upholds broadest school voucher program |publisher=Associated Press |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/indiana-court-upholds-broadest-school-voucher-program/ |access-date=March 26, 2013}}</ref> In 2025, [[Wyoming]] Governor [[Mark Gordon]] signed the Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act into law which provides $7,000 vouchers to students.<ref> https://www.wyoleg.gov/Legislation/2025/HB0199</ref>