SC Supreme Court will hear case against McMaster’s $32M spending on private schools

The South Carolina Supreme Court agreed on Thursday to hear what could be a landmark case over whether Gov. Henry McMaster can legally spend $32 million in COVID-19 federal relief aid on private school tuition grants this school year.

Oral arguments have been scheduled for Sept. 18.

A key question for the court to decide is whether public money can be used to subsidize private schools in South Carolina.

Last month, the governor was temporarily blocked by Circuit Court Judge Edgar Dickson from spending the money out of his discretionary education account, a total of $48.5 million. Dickson has not yet issued a ruling in the case. That suspension also blocked another round of spending for eight of the state’s historically black universities, because many of them are private.

The Supreme Court does not normally accept cases that have not been fully decided in lower courts, a process that with appeals can take years. However, the Supreme Court on occasion does accept cases of high public interest in an action which is called “original jurisdiction.”

“We appreciate the court taking this case because it gets us one step closer to getting these students and families the relief they need,” said McMaster’s spokesman, Brian Symmes.

McMaster announced the $32 million spending for students to attend private schools in July.

But soon after, McMaster and Palmetto Promise Institute, a conservative think tank, were sued by Thomasena Adams, a retired public educator who lives in Orangeburg County. Adams alleged McMaster’s spending out of his one-time education account on private schools violated S.C. law, barring public tax dollars from going to religious or other private education institutions.

The lawsuit also said that steering taxpayer dollars toward private schools and their students puts public school students at a financial disadvantage, including in Orangeburg and Richland school districts.

Adams’ lawyer, Skyler Hutto, said Thursday he welcomed the court’s decision. It will be his first case before the Supreme Court.

Hutto is the son of state Sen. Brad Hutto, D-Orangeburg.

“The plaintiffs are happy to have a clear path going forward about what we will need to do to appear before the court,” he said.

The issue over whether public money should be used to subsidize private schools has been a controversial political and legal question in South Carolina and around the country for years.

There are more than 700,000 South Carolina students who attend public schools, compared with about 50,000 who attend private schools, which have lost millions of dollars due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The $32 million in spending would translate to an average $6,500 in tuition aid for about 5,000 students right now enrolled in private schools for the 2020-’21 school year. Only families who fall within 300% of the federal poverty threshold are eligible.

Ellen Weaver, who heads the Palmetto Promise Institute, expressed confidence in their legal case.

“We’re encouraged by the Supreme Court’s decision to expedite this case, which has held up urgently needed education assistance for students impacted by COVID,” Weaver said. “We are confident in the merits of our legal case and hope we can quickly resolve this issue for the over 15,000 South Carolina families who have reached out, desperately seeking peace of mind for their child’s education.”

This story was originally published August 20, 2020 at 12:00 PM.