• “There is substantial evidence from other states showing the harm these costly voucher programs cause public schools and taxpayers. Vouchers undermine strong public education and student opportunity. They take scarce funding from public schools—which serve 90 percent of students—and give it to private schools—institutions that are not accountable to taxpayers. Instead of sending public dollars to private schools, which are under no obligation to serve all children, state funds should be used to support the public schools that 9 out of 10 Nebraska students attend.” - Jenni Benson, Support Our Schools Nebraska 
  

• “Time and again, voters across the country have rejected private school voucher schemes, which have proven to be expensive, unaccountable, and ineffective. Taxpayers in states with vouchers are struggling with the skyrocketing cost of these programs, as well as with the lack of transparency and accountability. Iowa’s new voucher program costs are far exceeding initial estimates, growing to more than $200 million this year. Arizona’s voucher program is a fiasco with the governor there saying it will likely bankrupt the state – and that it does not provide a better education for students. Nebraskans can avoid those problems by voting to repeal LB1402’s voucher scheme at the ballot box this November.” - Tim Royers, President, Nebraska State Education Association 
  

• “Instead of improving the schools that serve 9 out of 10 children in our state, instead of addressing the needs of over 300,000 students attending Nebraska public schools, 33 senators chose today to prioritize giving tax breaks to the wealthy and corporations by sending tax dollars to unaccountable private schools.  They did so despite overwhelming and constantly mounting evidence that the implementation of tax-credit voucher schemes does not improve access to private schools or academic outcomes but rather marks the beginning of a devastating dismantling and defunding of public education, as it has in dozens of other states.” - Stand For Schools 
  

• “In Nebraska, 9 in 10 students attend our public schools. Voucher tax schemes like LB 753 funnel money away from our already-underfunded public schools and children and redistribute tax dollars to private schools, including those that discriminate against children and their families. Research shows that school vouchers do not improve students' academic performance and they fail to support disabled and special-needs students.” - Not in Nebraska  
  

• “OpenSky Policy Institute is proud to stand with our dedicated public school educators and partners in defending the right of Nebraskans to determine whether their hard-earned taxpayer dollars should fund private school tuition. We are confident that heading into this election, Nebraska voters will look at examples like Iowa, where private schools increased their tuition rates more than 20% in grades that were eligible for scholarships, or Arizona, where lawmakers are trying to fill a $1.4 billion budget deficit caused in part by a ballooning scholarship program, and vote to repeal Section 1 of LB 1402. Nebraskans want meaningful work on our shared goals, like property tax relief, workforce development, and public safety. They want well-funded public education that ensures a bright future for our state. LB 1402 achieves none of these goals. We’re pleased Nebraskans will have a chance to let their voices be heard in November.” - Dr. Rebecca Firestone, Executive Director, OpenSky Policy Institute 
  

• “A repeal of the Opportunity Scholarships Act would be catastrophic for parents and kids who need more education flexibility. This program creates a tax credit scholarship program for students from lower-income families, students with special needs, students who experience bullying, students from military families, students in foster care, and students who are denied option enrollment. A repeal takes this all away.” - Keep Kids First Nebraska  
  

• “As many of you know, Governor Jim Pillen recently signed Nebraska’s first-ever school choice bill into law. The passage of the Opportunity Scholarships Act (LB753) made Nebraska the 49th state to enact a school choice program. Now thousands of Nebraska children will have hope for a better education that works for them. Unfortunately, within days of LB 753 becoming law, our state teachers union announced a referendum effort to repeal the Opportunity Scholarship Act, and the national teachers union has already donated nearly one million dollars to their effort. We must fight back and protect opportunity and hope for families and children in Nebraska.” - Nebraska Family Alliance 
  

• “The Opportunity Scholarships Act was supported by Governor Pillen and 33 senators – rural, urban, suburban, Democrat and Republican – and was generated out of a dedication to our whole state and a determination to give every single child a chance at a great Nebraska life.  After the Legislature passed historic increased funding for public education this session, the NSEA’s efforts to strip families, especially lower-income families, of greater educational opportunity shows they will do and say anything for their own self-interest, but not for Nebraska kids.” - Lou Ann Linehan, Nebraska State Senator 
  

• “This issue is very simple – it’s about giving families a choice in identifying the best educational environment for their kids. This is not about which one is better – public or private schools. I am confident that voters will understand the decision before them and will vote to keep school choice for children. We must provide students and their families the ability to decide the educational fit that works best for them. This law accomplishes that.” - Jim Pillen, Governor of Nebraska  
  

• "Others have argued LB 1402 defunds public schools. Those who make this claim either haven’t done the math or simply know they are lying. In the 2022-2023 year, K-12 schools received about $4.7 billion in taxpayer funds. Since my time as chair of the Education Committee, we have additionally appropriated over $1.6 billion for our public schools. Compare this spending with the $10 million cost of LB 1402, and we see that it is only about 0.2 percent, or two one-thousandths, of our total education funding. Compared to most school choice programs across the country, LB 1402 is amongst the humblest and most meager in the nation." - Dave Murman, Nebraska State Senator  
  

Committees formed to RETAIN the Nebraska Initiative 435, Private Education Scholarship Program Referendum (2024)

SUPPORT OUR SCHOOLS

Selected Contributions TO: Support Our Schools* include:

• Nebraska State Education Association
  
• National Education Association
• Vote for Schools
  
• Open Sky Policy Institute
• Stand for Schools
  
• Omaha Education Association
• Mark Liebman

*TO VIEW FINANCIAL REPORTS BY COMMITTEE:

• Click on the link - this will bring you to the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission Campaign Finance Database.
  
• Scroll down to the "Contributions" link "Campaign Finance" sub-heading.
• Choose "Ballot Question Committee" from the dropdown box next to "Filer/Recipient Type".
• Enter the Committee name in the 4th box down ("Candidate or Individual Last Name/Committee,Business or Other Name ") in the "Filer/Recipient" section.
• Select the "Date From" and "Date Through" using the calendars in the "Contribution/Transaction Details" section.
• Then select the "Find" button near the bottom.
• You can sort with the output data provided, or you can export the data if you wish.
• You need to repeat the process for each Ballot Measure committee.

Committees formed to RETAIN the Nebraska Initiative 435, Private Education Scholarship Program Referendum (2024)

KEEP KIDS FIRST

Selected Contributions TO: Keep Kids First* include:

• American Federation for Children Growth Fund
  
• American Federation for Children
  
• C.L. Werner
  
• James Pillen
  
• James Timmerman