Opinion – TJ Roberts: It’s time we address myth number one, that public dollars are only for public entities

Let’s play out the argument that public funds are only for public entities. Because I hear the Governor, the Lt. Governor, and the teacher’s union say this often.

Do they really believe that taxpayer money should be restricted to only public entities?

No. No one believes this. It’s an empty talking point that holds no water.

Public funds are not the government’s money, they’re your taxes, collected by the government to pay for things we, as a society, value and need – roads, bridges, and yes, education.

So, when Ford and SK, two private companies, received $250 million upfront from Kentucky taxpayers for the companies’ massive battery park in Hardin County, Gov. Andy Beshear claimed this is “money well spent.” It also included 1,500 acres of land (valued at $27 million) that Hardin County transferred to BlueOval, another private company, at no cost in October. And $25 million of your money to establish a workforce training center run by Elizabethtown Community & Technical College.

We allow public dollars to go to private institutions through Pell Grants, the GI Bill, Pre-K assistance, Head Start, Food stamps, WIC, Medicaid, Medicare, Section 8 housing, Social Security, and so much more.

So why then, is it ok to use taxpayer money on these projects and this economic development project, most of which goes to private companies, but not on ALL of Kentucky’s children?

We should invest in our children, wherever that investment leads – public school, private school, charter school, homeschool. It’s time to put the students’ needs first.

The secret they don’t want you to know is the ultimate beneficiaries of school choice are those who have been marginalized by our current system—the students who have been underserved and overlooked. Those with learning differences or those stuck in a failing school, or even those in an otherwise great school that just is not working out for that particular student.

If Ford and SK fail to provide what they have promised, there is accountability. That is the other argument – these “unaccountable private schools.” If a charter school isn’t accomplishing its goals, it closes. If a private school fails to educate a child? The parents leave, along with 100% of any future tuition dollars.

School choice isn’t about abandoning public education; this is not the either/or argument they would have you buy into. It’s about giving every child a fair shot at success. It’s about funding kids not systems.

Just as economic development projects benefit our state, a well-educated population benefits everyone. Our future depends on it.

TJ Roberts lives in Burlington and serves as the Vice President of the Northern Kentucky Young Republicans. He is the Republican Nominee for Kentucky House District 66.

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