Thursday, June 16, 2022 - Full Court

Education Freedom PAC vs. Reid (Ballot Issue)
Docket Number: 84736
Carson City - 3:30 pm - Full Court

Appellants challenge a district court order invalidating a ballot initiative that proposed a constitutional amendment to the Nevada Constitution that requires the Legislature to establish an education freedom account program.  The petition contained the following description of effect: “The initiative will provide parents with the ability to use funds appropriated by the Legislature to pay for the education of their children in a school or educational environment that is not part of the public school system. The initiative requires the Legislature to establish an education freedom account program under which parents may spend money appropriated by the Legislature into those accounts to pay for some or all of their child's education outside the public school system. The Legislature must establish an eligibility criteria for parents to establish an account. The initiative will result in the expenditure of state funds to fund the accounts in an amount comparable to the public support that would be used to support the education of the child for whose benefit the account has been established in a public school. For Fiscal Year 2021-2022, the Legislature determined the statewide base per pupil amount to be $6,980 per pupil. For Fiscal Year 2022- 2023, the amount is $7,074 per pupil. Generating the revenue to fund the accounts could necessitate a tax increase or reduction in government services. The Legislature must establish the program by the start of the school year that commences in 2025.”

ISSUES:

Issues: whether the district court erred by (1) invalidating a ballot initiative proposing a constitutional amendment on the basis that the initiative constitutes an unfunded mandate in violation of Nevada Constitution Article 19, Section 6 and granting an injunction preventing the initiative from moving forward; (2) concluding that the description of effect was insufficient because it failed to explain the financial impact on public schools; (3) failing to dismiss the complaint under 295.061(1), due to the district court's failure to hold a hearing in 15 days; and (4) concluding that the initiative was invalid because it requires and directs the Legislature to act.

Disclaimer:

This synopsis is intended to provide only general information about this case before the Nevada Supreme Court.  It is not intended to be all-inclusive or reflect all positions of the parties.  To access the documents that have been filed in this matter, type the docket number into the court’s case search page: https://caseinfo.nvsupremecourt.us/public/caseSearch.do