The corporate tax credit “scholarship” bill (which was defeated last year) is going to be heard in the House Education Committee on Friday, though it was not on this week’s calendar until Tuesday afternoon. Why are we not surprised? Because recently, Brownback’s former budget director and current Kansas Policy Institute fiscal policy fellow Steve Anderson told us in the comments on the Game On for Kansas Schools Facebook page,

“We could get 5000 kids out next year in Kansas using tax credit scholarships where people donate to a 501c3 and the scholarships go to those with lower than 185% of the federal poverty level (Medicaid eligible) I have donors ready to go and the private schools including the Catholic Diocese have vowed to make the seats available at $7000 a year tuition.”

We find it troubling that Mr. Anderson has engaged in negotiations to divert funds from the state general fund to private schools (which have no obligation to educate all Kansas children) while our public schools are being told there are insufficient funds to restore recession-era cuts.