Like us, you're probably hearing lots of questions swirling about Common Core. Are you looking for answers?
The questions we often hear include: Is it the right thing to do? Are the standards good or bad? What is the Mississippi legislature doing? Tell me about this commission they are creating (SB 2161). Will it do any good?
In addition to questions like these, many groups, including the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, have long asked whether Common Core is constitutional, or even legal.
On March 27, 2015 Mississippi Center for Public Policy and the Federalist Society hosted John Sauer at the Capital Club in Jackson. Sauer explained the constitutional and legal questions that continue to plague Common Core.
Watch the video of the Liberty Luncheon Here
Sauer is a Harvard Law graduate, Rhodes Scholar, and an experienced trial attorney. He is lead counsel in Sauer v. Nixon, a case that exposes the illegal implementation of Common Core. The case has already been heard by a Missouri court. The court found that the multi-state "Smarter Balanced" testing consortium being used to implement Common Core is "an unlawful interstate compact to which the U.S. Congress has never consented, whose existence and operation violate the Compact Clause of the U.S. Constitution."
Whether you believe Common Core is a tool to lift students to higher educational levels or an unconstitutional overreach of the federal government, we hope you will watch this presentation of Mr. Sauer's on-the-ground experience with this controversial national topic.
Special Needs Bill:
Bold Step in Giving Parents More Choice
March 26, 2015 - Mississippi Center for Public Policy President Forest Thigpen commended the Mississippi Legislature for passing the "Equal Opportunity for Children with Special Needs" bill, Senate Bill 2695. The bill is now on its way to Governor Bryant, who has promised to sign it.
"This bill will provide children with disabilities the opportunity to receive the education that best suits their needs," Thigpen said. He said a new mechanism created by this bill, called an Education Scholarship Account (ESA), "is the boldest step yet in giving parents more choice and transformational control over their children’s education."
With an ESA, parents will be able to choose among a variety of educational services, including specialized therapy, tutoring, software, and other methods of meeting the educational needs of their child. Parents will be able to choose whether to allocate some or all of the money for tuition at a private school.
Thigpen said ESAs are different from vouchers. "With a voucher," he said, "the entire amount would be allocated to one school, even if the child would be better served by utilizing a variety of options. ESAs allow that type of customization."
Over the past four years, Mississippi legislators have empowered parents and students by implementing transformational education reforms, such as charter schools, A-F ratings, the third-grade reading gate, and two voucher programs limited to speech and hearing disabilities.
"Legislators who voted for these reforms are listening to parents and should be commended," Thigpen said. "In some cases, they faced the wrath of school administrators and others who advocate mere tweaks to the current system. These legislators correctly see that parents don’t have time to wait for the bureaucrats to get it right. Their children need options now so that their children have the best future possible."
SB2695 is targeted to children with special needs, but Thigpen believes this type of parental choice will gain popularity and will eventually be available for all children.
"All children are unique, and all children should have the chance to receive an education that equips them for a fulfilling life," he said. ESAs put parents in the driver’s seat of their children’s education and future.
"Parents are ultimately responsible for the education and upbringing of their children," Thigpen said, "and they should have the tools they need to exercise that responsibility. If parents believe the public schools are not providing the education their children need, they should be allowed the flexibility offered by ESAs to pursue other options."
Thigpen noted the effort of the sponsors of the bill, Sen. Nancy Collins and Rep. Carolyn Crawford. "These legislators, as mothers of children with special needs, have a special understanding of the need for this legislation, and they have worked for years to achieve this. On behalf of the parents of Mississippi children with special needs, we are grateful for their dedication and perseverance."
Initiative 42 - The Proposed Constitutional Amendment Regarding Public Schools
The actual Constitutional amendment will not appear on the ballot. Only the following question will appear: Should the state be required to provide for the establishment, maintenance and support of an adequate and efficient system of free public schools? (more…)
MCPP President Forest Thigpen issued the following statement regarding the ruling by U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves which overturned Mississippi's Constitutional provision defining marriage: (more…)
"Waters of the U.S." and Endangered Species Regulations Cost Jobs, Violate Land & Business Owner Rights, and Usurp State & Local Authority
Seven years after his death, a friend of mine is drawing national attention because of a simple but profound observation he made about the process of how ideas move from being politically impossible to becoming law. His observation helps explain, in part, why the work of think tanks like ours is so important. (more…)
Budget and Taxes
This fiscal year there was a significant boost in state government revenue. While surpluses ideally should be returned to taxpayers, the Legislature did at least stabilize the budget to guard against tax increases in the future. (more…)
Before the year began, many legislators were expecting a relatively noncontroversial session. This was, perhaps, wishful thinking. But one bill that did not seem controversial was SB 2681, the Mississippi Religious Freedom Restoration Act (MS-RFRA). Indeed, SB 2681 sailed through the Senate with little debate and even seemed an appropriate vehicle for the governor's proposal to add "In God We Trust" to the state seal. (more…)
Last year, the federal government took in more money than any year in history - $2.7 trillion. The federal government also spent more money than any year in history - $3.7 trillion. We spent a trillion dollars more last year than we spent in 2006, just seven years earlier!
This shows that no matter how much we increase government spending, the problems that money is supposed to alleviate still exist, now accompanied by the additional burden of astronomical debt. (more…)