MADISON – Most Wisconsin Democratic lawmakers oppose private voucher schools – particularly those in the successful Milwaukee Parental Choice Program. 

Why? Because voucher schools lure students (and their share of state school aid) away from public schools, which typically employ union teachers. And teacher unions are major contributors to Democratic candidates. 

MORE NEWS: Know These Before Moving From Cyprus To The UK

So it stands to reason that Democrats will do whatever they can to discredit voucher schools, even if it means sharing selective half-truths with the public. 

Wisconsin state Sen. Janet Bewley (D-Ashland) made news last week by releasing a memo from the Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau that said state funding for public schools has declined by more than $200 per student since Gov. Scott Walker took office in 2011. Meanwhile, state funding for charter schools has increased by $911 per student.

“The memo says the voucher amount is $7,210 for kindergarten through eighth grade, and $7,856 per pupil in high school, while the state aid per pupil in public schools is $5,108,” Watchdog.org reported.

Those statistics suggest that public schools and their students have been ravaged by Walker and other Republicans, who tend to support vouchers schools. 

That’s clearly the impression Bewley wants parents and other citizens to form. 

“The fact of the matter is, we are dealing with no increase, and with more vouchers it’s pretty easy to see that public schools are getting less,” Bewley was quoted as saying by WRN.com. “If (state money) is not going where (parents) believe it is needed most – namely to schools where their children go – they should know about that.”

MORE NEWS: How to prepare for face-to-face classes

But Bewley doesn’t come close to painting a full and accurate picture of the situation. 

The fact is that Wisconsin public schools receive funding from the state, federal government and local tax revenue, which all adds up to a lot more than voucher schools receive.

“Actual spending per pupil in the state’s public schools is $13,031 when all funding sources are added, including local property taxes, federal aid and additional state categorical aid,” Watchdog.org reported. “For Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS), total revenue per pupil (was) $14,599 for the 2014-15 school year.”

Meanwhile, voucher schools get nothing more than the amount granted by the state for each student voucher – $7,210 for K-8 and $7,856 for high school.

The bottom line is that public schools receive a great deal more per-pupil financial support than voucher schools. Despite the huge discrepancy in funding, voucher schools in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program consistently perform just as well, or even better, than MPS students. 

It’s true that many students have left public schools for voucher schools, and that costs public schools money – but that’s a matter of parental choice.

If public schools like MPS were more successful in convincing parents to keep their children enrolled, instead of sending them to voucher schools, they would retain more state funding.

That’s the entire truth that Bewley chose not to address.