Join now before program ends

Nevada Treasurer Dan Schwartz is still promoting a program the Nevada Legislature shows every sign of ending.

“PARENTS URGED TO REVIEW ESA APPLICATIONS AND ‘HIT SUBMIT’” is the headline on an April 7 news release from Schwartz’s office. It calls on parents to sign up for a state program that gives them $5,000 grants to take their children out of public schools.

The program was created by the 2015 legislature, which had overwhelming Republican majorities. At the time, Democrats warned that they would repeal the program if they got back their majorities. They did win majorities in both houses in the 2016 election.

A bill introduced by Sen. Scott Hammond to repair a court-rejected funding process for the program has been ignored. For some reason, Gov. Brian Sandoval has submitted an identical bill, increasing the expense of a program that is expected to die.