1 Tracey M. Watson (Utah Bar No. 9881) UTAH EDUCATION

Tracey M. Watson (Utah Bar No. 9881)

UTAH EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

PO Box 57880

Murray UT 84157-0880

Tel: (801) 918-9301

Email: trace[email protected]

If you do not respond to this document

within applicable time limits, judgment

could be entered against you as requested.

Troy L. Booher (Utah Bar No. 9419)

J. Frederic Voros, Jr. (Utah Bar No. 3340)

ZIMMERMAN BOOHER

341 South Main Street, Fourth Floor

Salt Lake City, UT 84111

Tel: (801) 924-0200

Email: tbooher@zbappeals.com

[email protected]

Kass Harstad (Utah Bar No. 11012)

SCHOLNICK BIRCH

HALLAM HARSTAD THORNE

40 S 600 E

Salt Lake City, UT 84102

Tel: (801) 359-4169

Email: kass@utahjobjustice.com

Attorneys for Plaintiffs

IN THE THIRD JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT

IN AND FOR SALT LAKE COUNTY, STATE OF UTAH

KEVIN LABRESH, on behalf of himself

and his minor child; TERRA COOPER, on

behalf of herself and her minor children;

AMY BARTON; CAROL LEAR, in her

capacity as a member of the State Board of

Education; UTAH EDUCATION

ASSOCIATION,

Plaintiffs,

GOVERNOR SPENCER J. COX, in his

official capacity as Governor of Utah;

SEAN D. REYES, in his official capacity

as Attorney General of Utah; Alliance for

Choice in Education, d/b/a ACE

Scholarships,

Defendants.

COMPLAINT FOR

DECLARATORY & INJUNCTIVE

RELIEF

Case No: 240904193

Judge: Hon. Laura Scott

Tier 2

PLAINTIFFS hereby submit this Complaint for Declaratory Relief and Permanent

Injunction and allege as follows:

INTRODUCTION

1. This lawsuit challenges the Utah Fits All Scholarship Program, codified at Utah

Code Ann. §§ 53F-6-401-15 (“Voucher Program”).

The Voucher Program diverts state income tax

revenues to pay tuition and other expenses at exclusive, admissions-based private schools.

2. Utah’s commitment to free public education is older than the state itself. At the time

Utah applied for statehood, its Enabling Act provided that “[t]he schools, colleges, and university

provided for in this Act shall forever remain under the exclusive control of said State . . .” Utah

Enabling Act § 11. Accordingly, in drafting the education provisions in the original 1895

Constitution, the framers sought to “draw[] around the public schools such protection and defense

as will secure for them, it is believed, the steady upward progress which is the enthusiastic desire

of this people.” Utah Const., Address to the People of Utah (1895).

3. The 1895 convention delegates enshrined four provisions in the Constitution

establishing the State’s duty to establish and maintain an education system that is free, open to all

students, and under the control of the State Board of Education. All those provisions exist in similar

form today. Ordinance 4 of the Utah Constitution’s Irrevocable Ordinances, found in Article 3,

provides that “[t]he Legislature shall make laws for the establishment and maintenance of a system

of public schools, which shall be open to all the children of the State and be free from sectarian

control.” Article 10, Section 1 of the Constitution provides that “[t]he Legislature shall provide for

the establishment and maintenance of the state’s education systems including: (a) a public

education system, which shall be open to all children of the state; and (b) a higher education

system. Both systems shall be free from sectarian control.” Article 10, Section 2 of the Constitution

defines the state’s public education system as “all public elementary and secondary schools and

such other schools and programs as the Legislature may designate,” and further provides that

“[p]ublic elementary and secondary schools shall be free, except the Legislature may authorize the

imposition of fees in the secondary schools.” And Article 10, Section 3 vests “general control and

supervision of the public education system” in the State Board of Education.

4. Since 1895, the Constitution’s core education mandates have remained essentially

unchanged: the State must provide education, and its education systems must be (1) free, (2) open

to all students, and (3) controlled and supervised by the State Board of Education.

5. The Utah Constitution also safeguards public school funding by restricting the uses

to which income tax revenue may be put. When Utah adopted its first income tax, voters opted to

restrict use of income tax revenues primarily to public education. Those restrictions continue in

modified form today in Article 13, Section 5(5) of the Constitution, which explicitly earmarks

income tax revenue for three purposes: public K-12 education, public higher education, and social

services.

6. The Voucher Program violates these constitutional requirements. It diverts income

tax revenues to fund private schools that are (1) not free, (2) not open to all students, and (3) not

controlled and supervised by the State Board of Education.

7. Virtually all students in Utah will be eligible to apply for a voucher under the

Voucher Program. Given that reality and the manner in which the program is structured, it comes

as no surprise that a prominent lobbyist for the Program said privately that it was intended to

“destroy public education.”

Cassidy Wixom, “Utah Lawmakers Denounce Comments Claiming They’re Trying to ‘Destroy

Public Education,’” Deseret News (Jan. 24, 2023),

https://www.deseret.com/utah/2023/1/24/23568990/utah-lawmakers-denounce-claims-of-

destroying-public-education (citing statement of Utah Fits All Executive Director Allison

Sorenson, https://twitter.com/iamlisalogan/status/1617371111741874176).

8. To prevent these violations of the Utah Constitution, Plaintiffs respectfully request

that this Court enter an Order declaring the Voucher Program unconstitutional and permanently

enjoining Defendants from enforcing or implementing the Voucher Program.

JURISDICTION AND VENUE

9. This Court has subject matter jurisdiction over this action pursuant to Article 8,

Section 5 of the Utah Constitution; Utah Code Ann. §§ 78A-5-102 and 78B-6-401; and Rules 57

and 65A of the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure.

10. Venue is proper in this Court because this cause of action arises in Salt Lake

County. Utah Code Ann. § 78B-3-307 (renumbered July 1, 2024, at § 78B-3a-201).

11. This Court has personal jurisdiction over the Defendants, who are sued in their

official capacities and whose offices are located in Salt Lake County.

THE PARTIES

Plaintiffs

12. Plaintiff Kevin Labresh is a Davis County resident, a taxpayer, and the parent of a

minor child with a disability. His child attends a public school in Davis School District. Kevin’s

child has an Individualized Education Plan (“IEP”) under the Individuals with Disabilities

Education Act and receives special education services through his public school. In addition to

being a public-school parent, Kevin is also a school psychologist who has worked in Davis School

District for seven years.

13. Kevin chooses to send his child to public school to benefit from the support and

protections that his child’s IEP provides. Before beginning kindergarten in public school, Kevin’s

child was expelled from private preschool and daycare for behaviors related to his disability. Kevin

opposes the Voucher Program due to the harmful impact it will have on his child. The Voucher

Program will harm students like Kevin’s child because private schools receiving voucher funding

can refuse admission to children with disabilities like Kevin’s child and are not required to provide

special education services or comply with IEPs.

14. At the same time, the Voucher Program will have a negative impact on funding at

the public school where Kevin works, as well as the public school his child attends. As students

leave Davis School District public schools using public funds provided through the Voucher

Program, the public schools in that district will lose funding under the Weighted Pupil Unit funding

formula, thereby resulting in fewer resources available to educate and support the students

remaining in public schools like Kevin’s child.

15. As both a public-school parent and a school psychologist, Kevin has seen the

impact of inadequate funding for public schools, such as underfunded school-based mental health

support, insufficient access to mental health services, and an insufficient number of school

psychologists according to national recommendations, which will only be exacerbated by a further

reduction in funding. Kevin believes that public funds should be used to support public schools

that his child and all other Utah children can attend, and objects to the use of taxpayer money at

exclusive private schools that can refuse admission to and discriminate against his child and that

lack the same accountability, teacher licensure requirements, and curriculum standards required at

public schools.

16. Kevin also objects to the unconstitutional delegation of this state’s education

obligations to a private program manager and other private entities that are not accountable to the

public.

17. Plaintiff Terra Cooper is a Davis County resident, a taxpayer, and the parent of two

minor children. Her children attend public school in Davis School District. One of Terra’s children

has ADHD, and she receives services in her public school through a 504 Plan under Section 504

of the Rehabilitation Act.

18. Terra chooses to send her children to public school because of the resources

available there, including the services available to her daughter under her 504 Plan. Terra opposes

the Voucher Program due to the harmful impact it will have on her children. The Voucher Program

will harm students like Terra’s child because private schools receiving voucher funding can refuse

admission to children with disabilities like Terra’s daughter and are not required to provide special

education services or comply with 504 Plans.

19. At the same time, the Voucher Program will have a negative impact on funding at

the public schools Terra’s children attend. As students leave Davis School District public schools

using public funds provided through the Voucher Program, the public schools in that district will

lose funding under the Weighted Pupil Unit funding formula, thereby resulting in fewer resources

available to educate and support the students remaining in public schools like Terra’s children.

20. As a parent of children in public schools, Terra has seen the impact of inadequate

funding for public schools, such as access to mental health services and staffing, which will only

be exacerbated by a further reduction in funding. Terra believes that public funds should be used

to support public schools that her children and all other Utah children can attend, and objects to

the use of taxpayer money at exclusive private schools that can refuse admission to and

discriminate against her children and that lack the same accountability, teacher licensure

requirements, and curriculum standards required at public schools.

21. Terra also objects to the unconstitutional delegation of this state’s education

obligations to a private program manager and other private entities that are not accountable to the

public.

22. Plaintiff Amy Barton is a Utah resident and taxpayer. She lives in Washington

County and has been a public school teacher for 27 years, with 20 years as a teacher in the

Washington County School District public schools.

23. Amy opposes the Voucher Program due to the harmful impact it will have on the

public school district in which she teaches and the resources available to her to fully support her

students in meeting their potential. Amy believes that public education can be an equalizer and

stepping stone for students. The Voucher Program will harm public schools and undermine the

work of public school teachers like Amy by reducing funding for public schools. As students leave

Washington County School District public schools using public funds provided through the

Voucher Program, the public schools in that district will lose funding under the Weighted Pupil

Unit funding formula, thereby resulting in fewer resources available to teachers like Amy to

educate and support the students remaining in public schools.

24. As a long-time teacher in public schools, Amy has seen the impact of inadequate

funding for public schools, such as her school’s ability to hire necessary special education

paraprofessionals, which will only be exacerbated by a further reduction in funding. As a taxpayer

and educator, Amy believes that public funds should be used to support public schools and objects

to the use of taxpayer money at private schools that can refuse admission to students and that lack

the same accountability, teacher licensure requirements, and curriculum standards required at

public schools.

25. Amy also objects to the unconstitutional delegation of this state’s education

obligations to a private program manager and other private entities that are not accountable to the

public.

26. Plaintiff Carol Lear has served as an elected member of the Utah State Board of

Education since 2016. As a Board member, she carries out her constitutional duties of “general

control and supervision of the public education system.” Utah Const. art. X, § 3. Those duties

include setting standards for public schools such as teacher licensure and graduation credits, which

Board Member Lear believes are essential components to ensuring that every child receives a

quality education.

27. Board Member Lear opposes the Voucher Program because it directly undermines

her work as a Board member by publicly funding private schools that are not required to comply

with the standards that the State Board sets for public schools and by delegating oversight authority

that should belong to the State Board to a private entity that is not accountable to the public. Board

Member Lear believes that students receiving a publicly funded education should benefit from

instruction that complies with the standards and criteria developed by the State Board—the entity

entrusted by and responsible to the public to oversee and supervise education funded by the public.

28. As a former public high school teacher, Board Member Lear also opposes the

Voucher Program because it will divert public money to private schools that can discriminate

against students on the basis of religion, disability status, disciplinary history, past academic

performance, standardized test scores, gender identity, and sexual orientation and deny students

with disabilities the services that are available in public schools. In addition, as students leave

public schools using public funds provided through the Voucher Program, the public schools in

that district will lose funding under the Weighted Pupil Unit funding formula, thereby resulting in

fewer resources available to educate and support the students remaining in public schools and

exacerbating existing underfunding problems at public schools.

29. Plaintiff Utah Education Association (“the UEA”) is a voluntary membership

association organized under Section 501(c)(5) of the Internal Revenue Code. The UEA represents

approximately 18,000 active classroom teachers, retired educators, administrators, licensed

educational support personnel and students in education programs at universities. For more than a

century, the UEA has been dedicated to preserving and enhancing Utah public education. As a

result of that mission, the UEA has a direct interest in the funding and operation of public schools

and opposes the use of public funds to benefit private schools that operate in a manner inconsistent

with the promise of public education.

30. UEA opposes the Voucher Program due to the harmful impact it will have on the

public schools in which their members work and the resources available to their members to carry

out their duties as educators of Utah schoolchildren. The Voucher Program will harm public

schools and undermine the work of UEA members by reducing funding for public schools. As

students leave public school districts using public funds provided through the Voucher Program,

the public schools in that district will lose funding under the Weighted Pupil Unit funding formula,

thereby resulting in fewer resources available to UEA members to educate and support the students

remaining in public schools. As classroom teachers, administrators, and educational support

personnel in the public schools, UEA members experience directly the impact of inadequate

funding for public schools, which will only be exacerbated by a further reduction in funding.

Defendants

31. Spencer J. Cox is the Governor of Utah. Governor Cox is named in his official

capacity. Article VII, Section 5 of the Constitution provides that Governor Cox “shall see that the

laws are faithfully executed” and “transact all executive business with the officers of the

government.” He supervises all executive officers, and ensures their duties are performed. Utah

Code Ann. §§ 67-1-1(1)-(2),

32. Defendant Sean D. Reyes is the Attorney General of Utah. As the State’s chief legal

officer, Utah Const. art. VII, § 16, Mr. Reyes has a “interest[]. . . in sustaining the validity of

enactments of the legislative branch of government.” Parker v. Rampton, 497 P.2d 848, 852 (Utah

1972). He is named in his official capacity. This Complaint also serves as notice of this declaratory

judgment action as required by Utah Code Ann. §78B-6-403(3).

33. Defendant Alliance for Choice in Education, d/b/a ACE Scholarships, is a 501(c)(3)

organization. ACE Scholarships was selected by the Utah State Board of Education as the private

program manager for the Voucher Program and is tasked with administering the Voucher Program.

Utah State Board of Education, Agreements for Board Approval (Nov. 2023),

https://www.utah.gov/pmn/files/1040571.pdf.

FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS

The Voucher Program

34. On January 28, 2023, Governor Cox signed into law the bill creating the Voucher

Program, titled “Funding for Teacher Salaries and Optional Education Opportunities.” 2023 Utah

Laws Ch. 1, §§ 1-19. The law took effect on May 3, 2023. Id.

35. The law created the “Utah Fits All Scholarship Program,” a voucher program which

allows eligible students to receive up to $8,000

in state income tax funds to pay “qualifying

providers” for private school tuition, homeschooling expenses, and other eligible education

expenses, using “scholarship accounts” managed by a private “program manager” selected by the

This amount will increase each year based on inflation. See Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-402(2)(c).

State Board of Education. 2023 Utah Laws Ch. 1 §§ 1, 3-19, codified at Utah Code Ann. §§ 53F-

6-401–15.

36. Applications for the Voucher Program opened on March 1, 2024, and the Voucher

Program is scheduled to begin operating in the 2024-2025 school year.

37. The eligible expenses that will be paid through the Voucher Program using public

funds are:

a. Tuition and fees of a qualifying provider;

b. Fees and instructional materials at a technical college;

c. Tutoring services;

d. Fees for after-school or summer education programs;

e. Textbooks, curricula, and other instructional materials;

f. Educational software and applications;

g. Supplies or other equipment related to a scholarship student’s educational

needs;

h. Computer hardware or other technological devices intended primarily for

a scholarship student’s educational needs;

i. Fees for exams and exam preparation courses;

j. Educational services for students with disabilities such as occupational,

behavioral, physical, audiology, or speech-language therapies;

k. Contracted services provided by a public school district such as individual

classes, after-school tutoring services, transportation, or fees for extracurricular activities;

l. Fees for transportation to and from a qualifying provider, not to exceed

$750 in a given school year;

m. Expenses related to extracurricular activities, field trips, educational

supplements, and other educational experiences; and

n. Any other expense for a good or service that the program manager

approves.

Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-401(11).

38. Students who participate in the Voucher Program are barred from enrolling in

public school. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-401(1)(c)(ii)(A). Moreover, of the expenses paid for

through the Voucher Program, private school tuition is by the far the costliest, particularly given

that most of the eligible services for which vouchers may be used would be provided for free at

public schools.

Thus, the majority of Voucher Program funds will be used to pay for eligible

students to attend private schools.

39. With the exception only of students already participating in the State’s two existing

disability voucher programs or the Statewide Online Education Program, all students in Utah will

be eligible to apply for the Voucher Program, including current private school and home-schooled

students. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-401(1)(c).

40. A student may apply for a voucher if: (1) they are eligible to enroll in public schools

at the K-12 level; (2) they are not receiving funding under either of the state’s two disability

voucher programs; (3) they are not enrolled in the Statewide Online Education Program; and (4)

their parents agree to submit a “portfolio” each year “describing the scholarship student’s

educational opportunities and achievements under the program.” Utah Code Ann. §§ 53F-6-

401(1), 53F-6-402(3)(d)(i).

See Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-401(8).

41. The Voucher Program gives enrollment priority to prior Program participants,

followed by students from households with incomes below 200% of the federal poverty line,

siblings of participating students, and students from households with incomes between 200% and

555% of the federal poverty line. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-402(6). Students must reapply to the

Voucher Program annually.

42. The number of students participating in the Voucher Program each year is not

capped and will be limited only by the level of funding the Legislature chooses to appropriate. See

2023 Utah Laws Ch. 1, § 19.

Administration of the Voucher Program by a Private “Program Manager”

43. Rather than delegating management of the Voucher Program to the State Board of

Education or another governmental entity, the Legislature delegated day-to-day administration to

a private entity it calls the “program manager.” Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-405. The Voucher

Program directs the State Board to submit a request for proposals and select one program manager

to administer the Voucher Program by September 1, 2023. Id. at § 53F-6-404.

44. In November 2023, as required by law, the State Board selected ACE Scholarships

as the program manager. Utah State Board of Education, Utah Fits All Scholarship Program,

https://schools.utah.gov/utahfitsallscholarship (last visited May 24, 2024). The contract awards

$9,151,808.83 to ACE Scholarships for administering the program through June 30, 2028. Utah

State Board of Education, Agreements for Board Approval (Nov. 2023),

https://www.utah.gov/pmn/files/1040571.pdf.

45. The program manager is subject to minimal requirements: (1) it must be a 501(c)(3)

nonprofit organization; (2) it must not be affiliated with any international organization, harvest

data in order to distribute it to other entities or be involved in guiding any curriculum standards;

and (3) it must not manage either of the State’s two existing disability voucher programs. Utah

Code Ann. § 53F-6-401(5). The Voucher Program does not require the program manager to have

any prior experience administering education programs or any other public services.

46. The program manager is delegated the authority to manage every aspect of the

Voucher Program, from maintaining an application website and student waitlist to suspending

accounts in the event of intentional misuse of voucher funds. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-405. The

program manager must also approve private schools and other educational service providers,

known as qualifying providers, Id. at § 53F-6-401(8), and disburse payments to and process

reimbursements from those providers. Id. at §§ 53F-6-405(1)-(3), 408-409.

47. The program manager is authorized but not required to withhold voucher funds

from a qualifying provider that fails to comply with statutory requirements or no longer meets

eligibility requirements. Utah Code Ann. §§ 53F-6-403(2)-(3).

48. The State Board’s role in the Voucher Program is largely limited to selecting the

program manager and making sure its agreement with the program manager “ensures the efficiency

and success” of the Voucher Program. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-404(c)(i). The State Board may

not impose any requirements on the program manager that are “not essential to the basic

administration of the program”—including, in particular, any requirements concerning instruction

or curriculum. Id. at § 53F-6-404(1)(c), (8).

49. The Board is required to notify the program manager of any failure to comply with

the statute, but it is not required to take any further action. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-404(3). Apart

from that limited ad hoc review action, the Board has no authority over the operation of the

Voucher Program itself. In fact, under amendments to the Voucher Program made in the most

recent legislative session, authority over appeals from parents aggrieved by the program manager

was taken away from the Board and given to the program manager. 2024 Utah Laws H.B. 529, § 4

(amending Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-404(7)).

Academic and Fiscal Oversight

50. The Voucher Program imposes minimal requirements on who may become a

qualifying provider and receive public funds. Qualifying providers must be approved by the

program manager and cannot be “a parent of a home-based scholarship student or a home school

student solely in relation to the parent’s child.” Utah Code Ann. §§ 53F-6-401(8), 408, 409. The

Voucher Program requires the program manager to reject applications from qualifying providers

who do not meet certain bare minimum requirements, but otherwise it “shall” approve applications

from providers. Id. at §§ 53F-6-408(9)(a), 409(4)(a).

51. With respect to non-school qualifying providers in particular, the statute directs the

program manager to “maximize the number of eligible” entities without regard to the quality of

service they provide. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-409(2).

52. The Voucher Program imposes no academic standards on qualifying providers that

are accepted into the program. In fact, the statute establishing the Voucher Program contains an

entire section exempting qualifying providers from regulation. These provisions promise

qualifying providers “maximum freedom from unlawful government control.” Utah Code. Ann.

§ 53F-6-406(2).

53. The Voucher Program does not require qualifying providers to provide sound basic

education, satisfy any academic standards, or prepare students for higher education or the

workforce. They may instruct students in pseudoscience, conspiracy theories, or nothing at all.

54. Under the terms of the Voucher Program, participating private schools that enroll

150 or more students must disclose basic information to participating families about their programs

and costs, and some employees must submit to fingerprint-based background checks. Utah Code.

Ann. § 53F-6-408(1). But they are not required to disclose information that might help parents

evaluate the quality of their services, such as rankings, ratings, accreditation history, or test scores.

55. Instead of requiring accountability from providers, the Voucher Program requires

parents to assume the risk of evaluating educational quality provided under the Voucher Program.

To receive a voucher, parents of eligible students must submit an application and sign an agreement

certifying that the “qualifying provider” the parent has selected can meet the student’s educational

needs, acknowledging that the student may not receive the same level of disability services in the

voucher school that they might in a public school, recognizing that accepting the voucher has the

same effect as refusing to consent to services under IDEA, and assuming full financial

responsibility for the student’s education. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-402(4).

56. Unlike Utah public schools, which are open to all resident students, qualifying

providers are permitted to refuse admission or continued enrollment to voucher students based on

their identity, abilities, or educational record.

57. The Voucher Program’s provisions include a broad and explicit license to

discriminate: a qualifying provider cannot be required to alter its “creed, practices, admissions

policies, hiring practices, or curricula” as a condition of receiving public voucher funds. Utah

Code. Ann. § 53F-6-406(3). Qualifying providers must only refrain from discriminating on the

basis of race, color, or national origin. Id. at § 53F-6-408(1)(b). They are not prohibited from

discriminating on any other basis they choose, including religion, sex, age, marital status,

disability, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, or political affiliation.

58. On information and belief, the majority of private schools in Utah eligible to

participate in the Voucher Program are not open to all children and are selective in their admissions

and retention policies. As a result, at least some qualifying providers can and will refuse admission

or continued enrollment to voucher students on various grounds, including but not limited to

religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, academic history, disciplinary history, and

disability status.

59. The program manager has no incentive to ensure that qualifying providers offer

value to students, because the program manager will be paid in proportion to the amount of voucher

funds it distributes.

60. Fiscal accountability for voucher funds is minimal. Public schools are subject to

extensive financial reporting requirements and must “use uniform budgeting, accounting, and

auditing procedures and forms approved by the State Board of Education, which shall be in

accordance with generally accepted accounting principles or auditing standards.” Utah Code Ann.

§§ 53G-4-303(5).

In contrast, qualifying providers are required to submit only the most cursory

information to the private program manager:

a. Qualifying providers receiving $500,000 or more in Voucher Program

funds per year must file a surety bond with the program manager in an amount equal to the

total amount of scholarship funds the provider expects to receive in the upcoming school

year. Utah Code. Ann. §§ 53F-6-403(1).

b. Participating private schools that enroll 150 or more students are required

to have a certified public accountant create an audit report at the time the school first agrees

For a complete listing of these requirements see Utah State Board of Education, Financial

Operations: Reporting, https://www.schools.utah.gov/financialoperations/reporting (last visited

May 24, 2024).

Based on the allowable voucher amount of $8,000 per student, a school could take more than

60 voucher students each year without meeting this requirement.

to receive voucher funds, which must show that the school has the funds to maintain

operations for the first year of participation. Utah Code. Ann. § 53F-6-408(1). This audit

report only needs to be submitted to the program manager, not the State Board. Id. And

there is no requirement that the audit be repeated.

c. Private schools enrolling fewer than 150 voucher students are subject to

only the most minimal requirements and must give the program manager only their

employer identification number, address, and contact information, a description of the

programs and services they propose to provide, and any other information requested by the

program manager. Utah Code. Ann. §§ 53F-6-408(3), (5). Schools enrolling fewer than

150 voucher students are not required to demonstrate that they are solvent enough to

survive for a year in order to participate in the Program.

61. The program manager is not required to independently verify these submissions or

submit them to the State Board.

62. The program manager must contract for random, annual audits of voucher accounts

by an independent certified public accountant, report on those audits to the State Board, and

establish a process to suspend accounts in the event of intentional misuse of voucher funds. Utah

Code Ann. §§ 53F-6-405(4)-(5), (8). But the Voucher Program does not specify how many

accounts must be audited.

63. The Voucher Program also imposes no requirements to control costs for families

participating in the Voucher Program or to ensure the State receives a good return on its investment

of voucher funds. Unlike public schools, which are free, qualifying providers may charge

participating students tuition and fees in excess of the voucher amount. And the Voucher Program

does not bar qualifying providers from increasing tuition in response to inflows of funds from the

Voucher Program or from collecting higher tuition from Voucher Program participants than other

students.

64. For the 2022-2023 school year, private school tuition in Utah cost upwards of

$10,000 on average.

This estimate does not account for other “educational expenses” such as fees,

required services, and materials that families must pay as a condition of admission. As such, on

average families participating in the Voucher Program can expect to pay several thousands of

dollars out-of-pocket for their child’s education on top of the amounts paid by the State.

Funding the Voucher Program with Income Tax Revenues

65. The Voucher Program is funded by diverting funds annually from the Income Tax

Fund. 2023 Utah Laws Ch. 1, § 19 ¶ 1487. In 2023, the Legislature appropriated $42.5 million

from the Fund on an ongoing basis. Id. at § 19. The Legislature appropriated an additional $40

million during the 2024 legislative session. 2024 Utah General Session, Budget Summary,

https://le.utah.gov/interim/2024/pdf/00001946.pdf.

66. From the initial $42.5 million appropriated, the State Board may give up to $1

million to the program manager for start-up, marketing, and other costs associated with initiating

the Voucher Program. 2023 Utah Laws Ch. 1, § 19 ¶¶ 1490-94.

67. In addition to one-time startup costs, each year the program manager may use the

lesser of $2.5 million or 5 percent of the funds appropriated for the Voucher Program. Utah Code

Ann. § 53F-6-411(3)(a). This equates to $2,125,000 during the 2024-25 school year. See 2023

Utah Laws Ch. 1, § 19.

See Private School Review, Utah Private Schools by Tuition Cost,

https://www.privateschoolreview.com/tuition-stats/utah (last visited May 24, 2024).

68. The balance of the funds appropriated for the Voucher Program, approximately

$39,375,000 for the 2024-2025 school year, will flow directly from voucher accounts to private

schools and other private educational service providers.

69. After accounting for the diversion of funds to the Program Manager, there will be

enough funding for approximately 5,000 students to participate in the Program’s first year.

The Passage of Amendment G

70. Before 2021, Article 13, Section 5(5) of the Utah Constitution provided that “All

revenue from taxes on intangible property or from a tax on income shall be used to support the

systems of public education and higher education as defined in Article X, Section 2.” Utah Const.

art. XIII, § 5(5) (2020).

71. During the 2020 election, Utah voters approved Amendment G, which added

Subsection (b) to Article 13, Section 5(5). Subsection (b) provides that income tax revenues may

also be used “to support children and to support individuals with a disability.” Utah Const. art XIII,

§ 5(5)(b) (2021).

72. The ballot pamphlet presented to voters reflects the understanding that income tax

revenues unlocked by Amendment G would be earmarked for public social services. The sponsors

of the amendment, Senator Daniel McCay and Representative Mike Schultz, said the measure

would account for the “increasing importance of physical and mental health for academic success.”

They also assured voters that the measure would protect—not divert—public education funding.

73. From the time Amendment G was pending in the Legislature to the time it was

placed on the 2020 ballot, news reports, editorial comments, and public statements from the

Constitutional Amendment G at 2, https://voteinfo.utah.gov/wp-

content/uploads/sites/42/2020/10/Constitutional-Amendment-G.pdf.

Amendment’s sponsors reflect that the Amendment would do two things: fund existing social

services programs and allow additional funding to flow to public schools.

For example, Senator

McCay was quoted in the press saying that the purpose of Amendment G was to “focus on the

whole kid,” and ensure that state policy reflects that mental health and other social services

programs are part of a quality education.

Similarly, the Utah PTA, which endorsed Amendment

G, explained that “services for children and people with disabilities” meant funding Children’s

Justice Centers, Child Protection Services, Juvenile Justice Services, Immediate Care Facilities for

the Intellectually Disabled, Mental Health Centers and Substance Abuse Services.”

74. Little if any discussion of Amendment G described it as a conduit to divert income

tax revenue to a private school voucher program. Describing it that way would almost certainly

Marjorie Cortez, “Amendment G would ‘protect, stabilize’ education funding over the long

term, backers say,” Deseret News (Oct. 12, 2020),

https://www.deseret.com/utah/2020/10/12/21513036/utah-amendment-g-protect-stabilize-

education-funding; Jon Reed, “A Deeper Dive Into Amendment G: What It Does And Who’s

Behind It,” KUER (Oct. 26, 2020), https://www.kuer.org/politics-government/2020-10-26/a-

deeper-dive-into-amendment-g-what-it-does-and-whos-behind-it. Chris Jones and Nadia Pflaum,

“Amendment G could end decades of ‘sleight of hand’ regarding Utah budget process,” KMYU

(Oct. 16, 2020) (claiming Amendment G “would add some social services to the list of items that

could be drawn from the state’s income tax fund” in exchange for funding public school

“enrollment growth and inflation before everything else in the state budget”),

https://kmyu.tv/news/local/amendment-g-could-end-decades-of-sleight-of-hand-regarding-utah-

budget-process.

Robert Gehrke, “What’s Amendment G on your ballot? It’s a legislative shell game involving

education,” Salt Lake Tribune (Oct. 19, 2020), https://www.sltrib.com/news/2020/10/19/robert-

gehrke-whats/.

Utah PTA, “Utah PTA supports 2020 General Election Constitutional Amendment G,”

https://www.utahpta.org/2020-constitutional-amendment-g (last visited May 24, 2024).

have doomed the amendment, considering that in a 2007 public referendum, Utah voters vetoed a

school voucher bill by a margin of 62% to 38%.

FIRST CLAIM FOR RELIEF

Violation of art. III, Ord. 4 and art. X, §§ 1, 2 of the

Utah Constitution: Free and Open Schools

(Declaratory and Injunctive Relief, against all Defendants)

75. Paragraphs 1-74 are incorporated here by reference.

76. Plaintiffs bring this claim against all Defendants for the purposes of seeking

declaratory and injunctive relief.

77. Article 3, Ordinance 4 of the Utah Constitution declares that “[t]he Legislature shall

make laws for the establishment and maintenance of a system of public schools, which shall be

free and open to all the children of the State and be free from sectarian control.”

78. Article 10, Section 1 of the Utah Constitution restates the commitment announced

in Article 3, specifying that “[t] he Legislature shall provide for the establishment and maintenance

of the state’s education systems including: (a) a public education system, which shall be open to

all children of the state; and (b) a higher education system. Both systems shall be free from

sectarian control.”

79. These provisions are “mandatory and prohibitory” and serve as “a prohibition

against any law or rule which would separate or divide the children of the state into classes or

groups, and grant, allow, or provide one group or class educational privileges or advantages denied

another.” Spackman ex rel. Spackman v. Bd. of Educ. of Box Elder Cnty. Sch. Dist., 2000 UT 87,

¶ 16, 16 P.3d 533 (citation omitted).

Vote.Utah.Gov, Historical Election Results (2007), https://vote.utah.gov/wp-

content/uploads/sites/42/2023/09/2007Muni_Special.pdf; “Utah School Vouchers, Referendum

1, 2007,” Ballotpedia, https://ballotpedia.org/Utah_School_Vouchers,_Referendum_1_(2007)

(last visited May 24, 2024).

80. Article 10, Section 2 of the Utah Constitution defines the state’s public education

system to include “all public elementary and secondary schools and such other schools and

programs as the Legislature may designate.” Section 2 goes on to reinforce the state’s commitment

to a free system of public education by providing that “[p]ublic elementary and secondary schools

shall be free, except the Legislature may authorize the imposition of fees in the secondary schools.”

81. These constitutional mandates limit the Legislature’s discretion in fulfilling its

educational obligations; for instance, it “cannot establish schools and programs that are not open

to all the children of Utah or free from sectarian control, and it cannot establish public elementary

and secondary schools that are not free of charge, for such would be a violation of articles III and

X of the Utah Constitution.” Utah Sch. Bds. Ass’n v. Utah State Bd. of Educ., 2001 UT 2, ¶ 14, 17

P.3d 1125.

82. The Voucher Program violates Article 3 and Article 10 by establishing a program

within the public education system that is not free and is not “open to all the children of Utah,” Id.

at ¶ 12, 17 P.3d 1125 (citation omitted).

83. The Utah Supreme Court has noted that the Constitution may restrict the

Legislature either “expressly or by necessary implication.” Univ. of Utah v. Bd. of Exam’rs of State

of Utah, 295 P.2d 348, 360 (Utah 1956).

84. The State cannot outsource its obligation to provide a free and open public

education system. Nor can it circumvent or frustrate its core constitutional duty to ensure that state

education programs are free of charge and open without discrimination to all students by funding

private entities and licensing them to do indirectly what the State cannot do directly. State v.

Armstrong, 53 P. 981, 983 (Utah 1898) (holding that enactments are unconstitutional where they

attempt to “do indirectly that which could not be done directly.”).

85. For these reasons, the Voucher Program violates Article 3, Section 4 and Article

10, Sections 1 and 2 of the Utah Constitution.

SECOND CLAIM FOR RELIEF

Violation of art. XIII, § 5(5) of the Utah Constitution:

Use of Income Tax Revenues

(Declaratory and Injunctive Relief, against all Defendants)

86. The allegations in Paragraphs 1-74 are incorporated here by reference.

87. Plaintiffs bring this claim against all Defendants for the purposes of seeking

declaratory and injunctive relief.

88. Article 13, Section 5, Paragraph 5 of the Utah Constitution declares that “[a]ll

revenue from taxes on intangible property or from a tax on income shall be used: (a) to support the

systems of public education and higher education as defined in Article X, Section 2; and (b) to

support children and to support individuals with a disability.”

89. The Constitution “enshrines principles, not application of those principles,” and

when constitutional language is amended, it is the understanding of the voters who enacted that

amendment “that the amendment enshrines.” State v. Barnett, 2023 UT 20, ¶¶ 55-58, 537 P.3d 212

(internal quotation omitted). Thus, voter education materials and contemporaneous news coverage

are essential in determining the original public meaning of Article 13, Section 5, Paragraph 5 as

understood by the voters at the time of passage of Amendment G. Id. at ¶¶ 59-64, 537 P.3d 212.

90. The original public meaning of Article 13, Section 5, Paragraph 5 does not

authorize the Legislature to divert income tax revenue from public schools into a system of

vouchers to subsidize private school tuition and home-schooling expenses for children without

disabilities. As shown by contemporaneous voter education materials and news coverage leading

up to the 2020 election regarding Amendment G, the original public meaning of the language “to

support children and to support individuals with a disability” is that income tax revenue may only

be used for public and higher education and public social services programs. See supra ¶¶ 72-74

(citing voter information pamphlet and media reports).

91. Because the Voucher Program diverts millions of dollars of income tax revenue to

the private program manager, private schools, and other nonpublic educational service providers,

the Voucher Program violates Article 13, Section 5, Paragraph 5 of the Utah Constitution.

THIRD CLAIM FOR RELIEF

Violation of art. X, §§ 2, 3 of the Utah Constitution:

Delegation of the State Board’s Authority

(Declaratory and Injunctive Relief,

against Governor Cox and Sean Reyes in their Official Capacities)

92. The allegations in Paragraphs 1-74 are incorporated here by reference.

93. Plaintiffs bring this claim against the Governor and Attorney General for purposes

of seeking declaratory and injunctive relief.

94. Article 10, Section 3 of the Constitution declares that “[t]he general control and

supervision of the public education system shall be vested in a State Board of Education.”

95. Article 10, Section 2 further declares that “the public education system” consists of

“all public elementary and secondary schools and such other schools and programs as the

Legislature may designate.”

96. Accordingly, “the State Board has been vested with the authority to direct and

manage all aspects of the public education system in accordance with the laws made by the

legislature. This must include not only the laws regarding the public elementary and secondary

schools, but also the laws regarding any other schools and programs that the legislature designates

as part of the public education system.” Utah Sch. Bds. Ass’n, 2001 UT 2, ¶ 22, 17 P.3d 1125.

97. For these reasons, the Voucher Program violates Article 10 by vesting control and

supervision of a public education program in a private program manager and prohibiting the Board

from promulgating any rules concerning instructional content and curriculum in voucher-funded

schools. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-404(c).

FOURTH CLAIM FOR RELIEF

Violation of art. I, § 2 and art. VI, § 1 of the Utah Constitution:

Delegation of Constitutional Functions to Private Entities

(Declaratory and Injunctive Relief, against all Defendants)

98. The allegations in Paragraphs 1-74 are incorporated here by reference.

99. Plaintiffs bring this claim against all Defendants for purposes of seeking declaratory

and injunctive relief.

100. Article 1, Section 2 of the Utah Constitution declares that “[a]ll political power is

inherent in the people” and the Utah Government is “founded on their authority for their equal

protection and benefit.”

101. Article 6, Section 1, Paragraph 1 provides that “[t]he Legislative power of the State

shall be vested in,” “a Senate and House of Representatives,” and “the people of the State of Utah.”

102. These provisions bar the state from allowing “private citizens with no responsibility

to the public, to make binding determinations affecting the quantity, quality, and cost of an

essential public service,” particularly where “the public interest is subjected to the interest of a

group which may be antagonistic to the public interest.” Salt Lake City v. Int’l Ass’n of

Firefighters, Locs. 1645, 593, 1654 & 2064, 563 P.2d 786, 789 (Utah 1977).

103. The Voucher Program violates these provisions by delegating an essential public

service and one of the Legislature’s core constitutional functions—providing education—to

private entities and exempting them from oversight over both fiscal management and the quality

of educational services they provide. Utah Code Ann. § 53F-6-406.

ELECTION OF DISCOVERY TIER

Plaintiffs designate this case as a Tier 2 case as defined by Rule 26(c)(3) of the Utah Rules

of Civil Procedure, as this action seeks non-monetary relief.

PRAYER FOR RELIEF

For the foregoing reasons, Plaintiffs request that this Court:

1. Declare that the Voucher Program violates the Utah Constitution;

2. Permanently enjoin Defendants and their officers, employees, servants, agents,

appointees, or successors from implementing, administering, and enforcing the Voucher Program;

3. Waive any bond requirement for any injunction issued under Utah Rule of Civil

Procedure 65(A)(c)(1);

4. Retain jurisdiction over this action to render any further orders that this Court may

deem appropriate; and

5. Grant any further relief this Court deems necessary and proper.

DATED this 29

day of May, 2024.

SCHOLNICK BIRCH

HALLAM HARSTAD THORNE

/s/ Kass Harstad

Kass Harstad

One of the Attorneys for Plaintiffs