AFC Calls on Nevada Leaders to Save Scholarships

The American Federation for Children condemns the inexcusable actions of the Interim Finance Committee (IFC) members, who voted Wednesday to deny opportunity to children who desperately need it. The IFC, which makes state spending decisions when the Legislature is out of session, voted along party lines to deny Governor Lombardo’s request to preserve scholarship funding for Nevada students by directing unallocated COVID aid dollars. Now, hundreds of children are at immediate risk of losing scholarships as Opportunity Scholarship funding runs out after the legislature allowed funding to be cut in the last session.

Statement from Tommy Schultz, CEO, American Federation for Children:

“Losing scholarships would be devastating for some of Nevada’s neediest students, and we are appalled that politicians chose to rip away that opportunity. We applaud Governor Lombardo for his continued attempts to keep students learning, and we stand behind him and Nevada school choice advocates in this continued fight.

“For the last four years, we have worked to correct the issues that were highlighted in yesterday’s committee meeting, but Democratic legislators refused to consider reforms when they had the opportunity. Instead, they chose the cowardly and indefensible route of forcing Nevada children to suffer for their inaction. The only way to prioritize the immediate needs of children now is for every scholarship organization to work together to ensure no child loses a scholarship.”

Details:

• After the Nevada Legislature refused to negotiate in the last legislative cycle, the tax credit scholarship cap was cut from $11.4 million to $6.6 million.
• Several scholarship organizations have announced they would not be able to continue providing scholarships to hundreds of students.
• Gov. Lombardo’s designation of funds would have ensured that no students using Opportunity Scholarships would lose them; the IFC’s vote leaves those students in jeopardy as the school year approaches.
• AFC urges all scholarship organizations in Nevada to prioritize the immediate needs of children and ensure no child loses a scholarship.