A Cole County Circuit Court judge ruled Tuesday that Missouri can use public funds to pay for private school scholarships even though state law doesn't explicitly authorize it.
In a 57-page ruling, Judge Brian Stumpe wrote that lawmakers could directly appropriate funds to the MOScholars program because state law does not "expressly prohibit" it.
The Missouri National Education Association, which filed the lawsuit in June, said Wednesday in a press release that it plans to appeal the decision to the Missouri Supreme Court.
"This ruling doesn't change the facts: (the budget bill's) voucher scheme is unconstitutional," MNEA President Rebeka McIntosh said. "Missouri NEA's 45,000 union-represented educators believe families deserve a simple guarantee: if a school takes your tax dollars, it must welcome your child."
In 2021, lawmakers set up MOScholars to run on donations that can be claimed for a 100% tax credit up to a half of a donor's tax liability. Nonprofits act as intermediaries, accepting the donations and distributing the money to eligible students.
Last year, lawmakers approved a budget request from Gov. Mike Kehoe to direct $50 million in general revenue to the program's fund — which up until then, was only used for marketing and administration purposes.
The Missouri NEA and two of its leaders challenged the funding, arguing that state law does not allow the legislature to use a budget bill to dramatically change the program's framework.
But Stumpe rejected all of Missouri NEA's claims and ruled that the association and its members have no standing to sue because they are not harmed by the use of general revenue for private-school scholarships.
"The General Assembly's choice to spend money on a scholarship program does not inflict harm on public schools when the legislature has not diverted funds from public schools to cover the scholarship program," his judgment says.
Stumpe erroneously states in his ruling that MOScholars pulls from "entirely separate funding streams" than public schools, writing that the education budget has separate funds. However, while there are dedicated revenue sources, like lottery proceeds, that fuel public education — a majority of school funding comes from general revenue.
Even if Stumpe believed that the association had standing, his ruling sides with the state on multiple key issues with repeated reference to a lack of "clear prohibitions" on the use of general revenue.
"Plaintiffs have not shown that an appropriation into a statutorily created fund, even when underlying statutory framework is silent about appropriations, is impermissible," he wrote.
He rejected the notion that the direct appropriation to MOScholars violates a state law that limits bills to a single subject and requires legislative authorization.
Stumpe points to a 1992 Missouri Supreme Court decision that states when "conflict between two statutes is less than direct… then such a conflict may be resolved by relying upon the appropriation as strong evidence of the legislature's intention in adopting the general statute." He must "interpret the preexisting statute in light of a later appropriation," based on this precedent, his ruling says.
He concludes by speculating on the harm that could come if he put a stop to the funding at this point.
"Ordering the cessation of payments would risk putting families in a truly impossible situation — not receiving scholarship proceeds they believed were coming in the midst of the academic year," he wrote. "This could leave families financially liable to unpaid education providers."
Advocates for the voucher program and Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway heralded Stumpe's ruling as a victory in news releases Tuesday evening into Wednesday.
"The court's ruling is a clear win for Missouri families and for educational opportunity," Hanaway said in a press release. "Parents, not special interests, are trusted to decide what education best fits their children. Our office will continue to defend families' freedom to choose."
This story was originally published by the Missouri Independent.
