JUNEAU, Alaska – Alaska lawmakers are considering legislation to lay the foundation for a private school voucher program, and the state’s Education Establishment is already up in arms.

Union and public school officials held a lunchtime rally at Capitol in Juneau Monday to show their opposition to legislation introduced in both legislative chambers to repeal language in the Alaska constitution that states, “No money shall be paid from public funds for the direct benefit of any religious or other private educational institution,” the Juneau Empire reports.

The Juneau Education Association and the city’s school board have haggled over raises for teachers, but the two sides were united this week in their opposition to vouchers and demand for more state education funding.

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“We had different views on how to cut the budget pie,” JEA Vice President Dirk Miller told the news site, but the sides agree “we need a bigger pie.”

It seems school and union officials can never get enough pie, otherwise known as state education funding. That’s the main reason why Alaska’s Education Establishment is so opposed to the idea of private school vouchers.

School and union leaders want to keep all of the pie to themselves, no matter how big of a mess they make gobbling it all up. But a number of state lawmakers clearly understand not all parents have an appetite for public schools, particularly schools that have failed for years to properly educate students.

State Sen. Peter Micciche, a Republican from Soldotna, attended the rally “to help him understand all sides of the issues,” the Empire reports, but believes “not every child learns the same.”

He also believes education has become a political tool for some.

“Poking each other isn’t going to be effective,” he told the news site. “Education should not be a toy that we use as a pawn for next year’s elections. It should be a priority for all legislators all the time.”

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House Education Committee chairwoman v seemed to be on the same page. The Republican lawmaker told the Empire she wants to explore all school choice options for Alaska families.

“I’m in favor of looking at all the options for education, and I think that’s one of the options we need to look at,” Gattis said of private school vouchers. “We have been an evolving education program since statehood.”

Establishment officials, however, seem to be winning the education funding debate. Two bills have already been introduced this session to increase the Base Student Allocation (BSA) for public schools. And it seems at least some school board members are threatening the public with teacher cuts if the increased spending isn’t approved.

Juneau “school board member Andi Story said at the rally that if the BSA is raised by $85 per student next year as proposed, the school district will only have to cut 17 teaching positions rather than the 27 anticipated,” according to the news site.

State Rep. Cathy Munoz, a Republican from Juneau, said the increase is good, but not good enough.

Munoz told the Empire that “districts all over the state are having difficulties balancing their budgets” because of rising health care costs, declining federal dollars, and a static BSA.

Munoz also reiterated the tired union line that a voucher program would take away funds from public schools.

But in most states that offer private school vouchers, the program actually saves taxpayers substantial amounts of cash. That’s due to the fact that private schools aren’t unionized, and that allows them to educate students at a lower cost than what public schools can.

Legal precedent in other states also shows Alaska lawmakers may not need to amend their constitution to launch a voucher program, since most voucher programs give money to parents, not the schools themselves, and allow parents to determine which school is best for their child.