TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Earlier today, House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell (D–Tampa), Representative Kelly Skidmore (D–Boca Raton), and Representative Allison Tant (D–Tallahassee) sent a letter to Education Commissioner Manny Diaz, Jr. requesting the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) to publicly release critical data relating to its scholarship funding organizations (SFOs) and to detail how public schools will be impacted should school voucher costs surpass district budgets.
In the letter, Leader Driskell, Representative Skidmore and Representative Tant ask FLDOE to include in its response: how many new private schools applied to accept vouchers; student demographics and family income information for recipients; the type of voucher received by students; the future impact of these vouchers on the state budget; and the effect of the voucher program on public schools. The Representatives also call for the data to be released regularly and on a quarterly basis for public awareness to ensure taxpayer dollars are responsibly spent.
“Parents have the right to decide what’s best for their children’s education, but they should have all the necessary information as they do so,” said Leader Driskell. “Public transparency is integral to accountability. The state owes Floridians a responsibility to invest our hard-earned tax money wisely, and it’s impossible to know whether that’s happening with the limited information we have about spending within the voucher program.”
The letter sent to Commissioner Manny Diaz, Jr. is attached.
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