After careful consideration, we have decided not to request a rehearing from the Supreme Court following their ruling in Eidson v. South Carolina Department of Education, which invalidated legislation aimed at providing educational scholarships to thousands of underprivileged South Carolinians.
While we strongly disagree with the majority's decision, believing it to have misinterpreted
both the intent of the framers of our state constitution and previous Supreme Court rulings, we do not believe that seeking a rehearing would alter the outcome. More importantly, it would not provide immediate relief to the thousands of children who now face being removed from their current schools because of the Court’s decision. Further delays caused by continuing this litigation will not help the students for whom the legislature intended to provide hope and opportunity.
The Supreme Court has issued its decision, and though we firmly believe they unnecessarily
employed inflammatory language to denigrate those who support parental choice and utilized an outcome-driven approach to interpreting the constitution, we must accept their ruling. However, this decision casts doubt on other critical programs, including lottery scholarships for students attending private institutions, funding for South Carolina’s historically Black colleges, and the First Steps program.
Despite the major flaws in the Court’s judgment, it is now the legislature’s responsibility to
address the consequences of the Court’s opinion and correct the course. To accomplish that goal, both the House of Representatives and the Senate will each begin working to find a way to restore the opportunities these students deserve and unfortunately lost. Our highest priority when the General Assembly reconvenes in January is to ensure that families have educational choice and that funding for other educational programs that have been relied upon by so many South Carolinians for decades are secured for the future.