An Arizona court has upheld a state law allowing parents to use public funds to educate their children at private and parochial schools.

In a unanimous ruling on Oct. 1, the Arizona Court of Appeals rejected arguments by the Arizona Education Association, the Arizona School Boards Association and others that said the voucher program violates the state constitution, which bars the use of public funds for religious instruction.

In its opinion, the court found that how parents use their “empowerment scholarship accounts” — the equivalent of a voucher — is irrelevant because the state is not encouraging one religion over another.

Arizona lawmakers approved vouchers in 2011 to help students with special needs, and the ruling was made with that constituency in mind. Under that law, the state treasury established a special account that parents of students with disabilities could use to pay tuition and fees. The aid is equal to 90 percent of what the state would otherwise pay for public school attendance; it ranges from $1,700 to $26,000. The law was later expanded to students in failing schools.

The court’s decision is expected to be used to expand the program statewide, allowing parents of 1.1 million students in Arizona to use the vouchers to opt out of public schools.

Don Peters, a lawyer representing the opposition, said as more children leave the system, the state has less of an interest in funding public schools. He said he would appeal the decision to the Arizona Supreme Court, which struck down a similar program in 2009.

Arizona Daily Star, Oct. 2