D.C. voucher program could grow

The D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program, created in 2003, is the first federally funded voucher program in the nation. Last year, Congress enacted a voucher-like program for students displaced by Katrina.

The D.C. program provides vouchers worth up to $7,500 per year to children who live in D.C. and who have a household income of no more than 185 percent of the poverty level. That comes to $37,000 for a family of four.

After children have completed a year in the program, the income cap is raised to 200 percent of the poverty level ($40,000 for a family of four).

Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) amended the District of Columbia appropriations bill in committee, raising the cap to 300 percent of the poverty level ($60,000 for a family of four). The D.C. appropriations bill passed by the House did not amend the voucher program.

The Washington Scholarship Fund (WSF), a nonprofit organization the U.S. Education Department contracted with to administer the program, reports that during the 2005-06 school year, nearly 1,650 students used vouchers to attend 58 private schools. WSF said that unless the Brownback amendment is passed, hundreds of children currently in the program will lose their eligibility over the next three years.

NSBA opposes any increase to the income limit.