Florida court says vouchers constitutional

Tallahassee, Fla. — A Florida appeals court has ruled that a school voucher law permitting taxpayer money to be used for private education is constitutional.

The decision by the First District Court of Appeals Oct. 3 overturned a March ruling by a trial judge that the law violated Florida’s constitution, the Associated Press reported.

Appellate Judge Charles Kahn Jr. wrote in the decision that there was nothing in the constitution that “clearly prohibits the Legislature from allowing the well-delineated use of public funds for private school education, particularly in circumstances where the Legislature finds such use is necessary.”

Students at schools receiving poor ratings from the state can seek vouchers for private school tuition at the expense of taxpayers under the law adopted in 1999. The value of vouchers ranges from $3,000 to $4,000.