Idaho's Republican legislative leaders say the state constitution does not prohibit them from subsidizing private school tuition alongside funding public education.
The response comes after a group of advocates, alongside Idaho's largest teacher's union and the Moscow School District, sued the state in September to overturn the new $50 million subsidy law.
Legislative leaders filed their response late Monday night, acknowledging the Idaho Constitution requires them to maintain a system of free public schools.
"Some Idaho parents, for reasons of faith, ideology, or circumstance, choose to educate their children outside the public-school system. This parenting decision is not one that the State can, will, or should interfere with," they said.
Their attorneys said this new tax credit enhances the constitutional mandate by further educating the public, just through other means.
"The existence — and satisfaction — of that duty does not stop the Legislature from providing additional educational opportunities to Idaho's children, as it has with the parental-choice tax credit," lawmakers said in the brief.
They wrote that the state spends more than half of its budget on education and none of it was withheld to pay for the new program.
Parents could receive $5,000 per child through the tax credit, which could be used to pay for private school tuition, tutoring and homeschooling curriculum.
It would initially favor lower-income families. A family of four, for example, would get preference if they earn less than about $96,000 annually.
That preference expires beginning in 2027. Instead, parents who've received the tax credit before would jump to the front of the line.
The program remains operational despite the ongoing lawsuit. Parents wanting to apply for the credit must have registered an account with the Idaho Tax Commission by Dec. 1.
Applications for the credit, and potentially an advance payment, will open Jan. 15 and close March 15.
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