An independent audit of Florida's voucher system has been submitted to the legislature, and a review of its findings in a Senate committee found several budgetary pitfalls.
The audit found a funding shortfall of $398 million for the voucher program during the 2024-2025 school year. It also found missed cross-check opportunities and ineffective survey processes, which led to funding inequities in some public schools.
Several private schools also missed out on being paid for the educational services they provided students.
Sen. Jason Pizzo, an independent from South Florida, is vice chair of the committee that reviewed the audit. He thinks the Florida Department of Education isn't capable of running the voucher program.
"These are taxpayer dollars and we're trusted with these dollars," Pizzo said. "I left myself asking, 'Does the department have the ability to reconcile these issues?' I don't know that many people in that office have ever made a payroll. Certainly you could never close out books for a company or an organization the way this is."
The audit also found hundreds of voucher accounts for students with disabilities had balances that exceeded the maximum legal amount per year. These additional payments totaled $2.3 million by the end of the year.
Pizzo said at least some of those issues were addressed years ago, before the Legislature voted in 2023 on HB-1, which created the state's universal voucher program.
"At long last, some of us pre-staged the idea that $642 million dollars was an aspirational, BS amount a couple years ago that it would balloon up to something like $3 or $4 billion. And we were told we were nuts when we said that. And here we are," Pizzo said.
Also, at the meeting, was general counsel for six to 12 private, mostly Christian schools that say they weren't paid for the services they provided to kids on vouchers.
Attorney Lamonte W. Carter said the schools have, "experienced a great amount of loss and damages since 2022 in somewhat of detrimental reliance on payment of scholarships that were awarded to students that enrolled and yet were not paid."
Carter said he's been working with Step Up for Students, the nonprofit that manages the voucher program, to try to resolve these issues. He says the schools he represents include those serving kids with autism and behavioral problems, and those in low socioeconomic communities.
Step Up for Students says, they believe, "there is a fundamental misunderstanding or disagreement by these schools as to the timing and funding requirements for school scholarships."
"We have worked extremely closely with these schools who believe they have not been fully funded. We are confident that our records will demonstrate our commitment to servicing them, and that their claims are unwarranted. We will continue to work with them to ensure that every eligible student is funded appropriately," read a statement from Step Up.
The Florida Department of Education said it's working on strategies to collaborate with and communicate better with public and private schools throughout this process.
Some 500,000 students in Florida are currently using school vouchers. Starting in 2023, all families were eligible to apply, under the state's new universal program.
Public schools across Central Florida have been decrying a drop in enrollment and the resulting drop in funding this school year.
Orange County Public Schools, which lost 7,000 students this year, has advocated locally and in Washington, D.C., to fully fund public schools.
Experts say a drop in enrollment and funds for public schools in the state could force some districts to lay off staff and close or consolidate school buildings.
Read the full audit along with recommendations here:
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