Parents reeling following ESA ruling by Nevada Supreme Court

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This story first aired on Channel 8 on September 29, 2016. You can view the original story here.

The halt to the controversial ESA program by the Nevada Supreme Court has left many parents across the valley in a bad situation.

The court found Nevada’s Education Savings Account program doesn’t violate the state constitution however the funding under the bill that created the program is in question.

Justices issued a 4-2 ruling on Thursday calling for a permanent injunction on the program, which was on hold on a temporary basis.

However, over 4,000 parents had already registered their child in private schools, and they wanted a check from the state to cover it.

8 News NOW Reporter Sharie Johnson talked to Educate Nevada Now who says it is thinking about the thousands of parents caught off guard by the court’s ruling Thursday.

During the group’s news conference, policy director Dr. Sylvia Lazos said State Treasurer Dan Schwartz did not give parents full disclosure about the nature of this program.

Lazos said he was not upfront with parents about the fact that this program might not clear every hurdle needed to make it a reality.

“I am very mournful that some parents are going to be disappointed, according to Dr. Lazos. “I will add however that Secretary Schwartz was advertising this program not really giving people warning of the fact that there were serious constitutional problems and that it was under deliberation.”

The treasure responded to the criticism saying they’ve always worked to communicate the most accurate and updated information about the program with parents. Schwartz says he doesn’t see a problem with encouraging people to enroll in the program because it is constitutional.

So, where does CCSD stand on the new ESA ruling?

The Clark County School District sent the following statement:

“During the ESA testimony in the 2015 Legislative Session, CCSD expressed significant concern. We will monitor the situation to determine any future impact on CCSD.”