March Ruling on Milwaukee’s Choice Plan Declared Moot
A March court ruling on Milwaukee’s school-choice program is moot because of later action by the state legislature, a federal appellate court says.
Last spring, a U.S judge ruled that extending the program to religious schools would violate the separation of church and state. The ruling came in a case seeking to include religious schools in the program. (See Education Week, March 29, 1995.)
But a federal appeals court this month overturned the district court’s ruling, noting that recent state legislation allowing religious schools to be included made the earlier ruling moot.
In July, Wisconsin lawmakers expanded the city’s -choice program to include religious schools. The law previously allowed low-income parents to use the state-financed tuition vouchers to send their children to nonsectarian private schools only.
That expansion is being challenged by another lawsuit, which is now before the state supreme court.
