Education funding argument does not pass constitutional muster

Before the first of two scheduled Saturday town hall meetings, we asked for, and received, a sit-down interview with Alaska Senate President Charlie Huggins to talk about what happened this past week in the Legislature with a proposed amendment to the Alaska Constitution that would allow public education dollars to go to private schools.

Friday, the bill was advanced to committee, but not to the Senate Education Committee. Huggins defended the move, calling the outcry against the measure mere politics.

Further, he brushed aside concerns, saying the state is already sending Alaska’s tax dollars to religious schools through the Alaska Performance Scholarship. Huggins said it is case law — and not the Alaska Constitution — that prohibits public money from going to religious schools.

To recap, here is what our constitution says in Article VII, Section 1:

“The Legislature shall by general law establish and maintain a system of public schools open to all children of the state, and may provide for other public educational institutions. Schools and institutions so established shall be free from sectarian control. No money shall be paid from public funds for the direct benefit of any religious or other private educational institution.”

We’re not constitutional scholars, and neither is Huggins, he said, but that phrase “no money shall be paid from public funds for the direct benefit of any religious or other private educational institution” seems pretty clear.

But during testimony this past week during hearings on the Alaska Performance Scholarship, and again at the town hall meeting at Snowshoe Elementary on Saturday, our Valley lawmakers testified on the record to their knowledge of this constitutional violation.

“We’re already funding students at religious schools through the performance scholarship,” Huggins said Saturday during our sit-down interview. He also repeated the comment to the audience at the meeting.

Constitutionally mandated public education ends at high school. So Huggins’ reasoning is flawed. He’s the one playing politics with this issue.

The state’s scholarship program has no place in this debate. In fact, there should be no debate at all, since the constitution is clear and unambiguous about public education funding.

To be clear, we are not opposed to nonpublic education. Families are entitled to send their children to private school. But they are not, according to the Alaska Constitution, entitled to do so with public money.

We were stunned Saturday when Huggins leaned on the constitution in speaking out against a Department of Natural Resources proposal for a guide concession program.

“Whatever we do, if has to be constitutional. It has to stand up under the bright light of the law, or it won’t last very long,” he told the crowd at Snowshoe.

We agree completely, which is why we find this debate so puzzling.

This is the same constitution, after all, that Huggins is pushing hard to amend with regard to public education, while failing to uphold the legal oath he swore to protect and defend it.

Valley legislators Huggins, Dunleavy, Wes Keller and Lynn Gattis have made no bones about their support for what they call “school choice.” But in this case, that will mean changing our constitution so it is legal to send limited public tax dollars to religious and other private schools. This is surely not an appropriate use by Huggins of the bully pulpit of the Senate presidency.

More than simply opposing this amendment to our constitution as bad education policy, we also oppose our lawmakers violating the constitution when it suits their special interests.

We call on all of our elected representatives to uphold the oath they swore to honor an d defend our constitution. And we encourage all citizens to do the same.