SALT LAKE CITY — A judge will allow Utah's controversial school choice scholarship program to continue pending appeals to the state's top court.
Last week, Third District Court Judge Laura Scott struck down the Utah Fits All program as unconstitutional. Critics sued over it, alleging it is a voucher program siphoning money from public education. But during a hearing on Wednesday, Judge Scott acknowledged that an appeal to the Utah Supreme Court was inevitable, so she said she would not enter an injunction.
That means the program will continue on as it has. Parents can continue to apply or receive up to $8,000 for private school tuition or other expenses. It also means that teachers can receive raises and bonuses as part of a bill that created the initial Utah Fits All program.
"I will not impose a remedy at this point. I’ll issue the final ruling that will go up on appeal," Judge Scott said Wednesday. "There will be no injunction in place. My understanding is that would mean things proceed as normal unless and until we have a decision by the Supreme Court."
Kevin Labresh, one of the parents who joined the Utah Education Association in suing over the program, said he was fine with that.
"We expected there would be an appeal, so I'm good with seeing the process play out. You know, I have no reason to believe that that the ruling will not continue to stand. And, yeah, I'm OK with that," he told FOX 13 News. "I'm OK with not making any sudden changes that would impact the families who are already a part of the program, because we want a solution that will be fair for everybody."
The judge's decision was a relief for Corinne Johnson, the president of Utah Parents United, who sat anxiously outside the courtroom for word of the Utah Fits All scholarship program's fate. She told FOX 13 News she has been fielding numerous texts and emails from parents anxious about what would happen to their children in the program.
"We have 10,000 families that are relying on the Utah Fits All scholarship and to not know whether they’d get funding this year or even if they could apply to move forward with their children’s education plan was a really difficult place to be in," Johnson said, adding: "We’re grateful that Judge Scott chose not to do an injunction and that she gave the parents the certainty they could continue to educate their kids as they see fit."
The Utah Education Association and others sued, alleging that what the legislature passed was an illegal voucher program, siphoning money from public education. Judge Scott agreed, ruling that there were issues with how the program was applied.
"We strongly believe that the voucher program was an unconstitutional money grab from public education toward a program that had little to no accountability and that lacked equitable access for special needs, students like my son and the students who I serve at work, along with many others," Labresh said.
Lawyers for the state of Utah asked the judge to stay her entire ruling, something Judge Scott declined to do. However, the plaintiffs' attorney did not object to a stay on the injunction.
"Our interest is in getting a final resolution as quickly as possible," said Ramya Ravindran, an attorney for the UEA. "We recognize the final word on constitutionality is coming from the Supreme Court."
Judge Scott said she would grant the state's request for a final ruling addressing two claims she found "moot" by her original ruling. After that is issued, the state of Utah will appeal to the Supreme Court. The justices will then decide whether to hear the case (they are expected to grant it) and arguments could be scheduled in a few months.
