A coalition of education and parent groups filed a lawsuit Tuesday to prevent the state from reimbursing private and parochial schools for expenses related to health and safety mandates, arguing such payments are unconstitutional.

Speaking at a press conference, the groups said $2.5 million included in the state's budget to reimburse nonpublic schools for the mandates amounts to a "backdoor voucher."

"The Michigan constitution bans public resources for direct or indirect aid to maintain any private non-denomination or any nonpublic schools," said Chris Wigent, executive director of the Michigan Association of School Administrators.

He added that voters rejected the use of public dollars for private schools in 2000, when a statewide ballot referendum to lift Michigan's constitutional ban on vouchers was defeated.

"Giving $2.5 million to private schools in this way is a backdoor voucher and will lead to other more questionable uses of public funds in the future," Wigent said.

Private school groups say the reimbursements are legal because they only cover the cost of complying with health and safety mandates, such as conducting safety drills and other mandatory record keeping requirements, and not instructional related expenses.

"We believe it is misplaced," David Maluchnik, spokesman for the Michigan Catholic Conference, said of the lawsuit. "I think it's critical that every child in Michigan is educated in a healthy and safe environment, whatever type of school that may be."

The lawsuit is expected to be filed today in the Michigan Court of Claims.

Public education groups spoke out against the $2.5 million reimbursement when Michigan's Republican-controlled Legislature added it to the $16.1 billion education budget.

Snyder acknowledged there were "potentially some legal issues" with the funding, but he declined to veto the spending as some groups had requested. In July, he asked the Supreme Court for an advisory opinion on the legality of the funding, but the court in October denied his request.

Kalamazoo Public Schools Superintendent Michael Rice, whose district is a plaintiff in the lawsuit, acknowledged that $2.5 million is "not a large sum of money." But, he said, it's not the sum of the money that's in question - it's the principle.

"We let it go this year, it becomes $25 million next year. The following year it becomes $250 million," he said. "This is the camel's nose under the tent."

Michigan's constitution says no public money shall be paid to "directly or indirectly to aid or maintain any private, denominational or other nonpublic, pre-elementary, elementary, or secondary school."

As of now, nonpublic schools have until June 15 to submit a form to the Michigan Department of Education detailing any expenses they wish to be reimbursed for. But today's lawsuit seeks a preliminary injunction, which would immediately stop any dollars from being disbursed.

Plaintiffs in the lawsuit include the Michigan Association of School Administrators, Michigan Association of School Boards, Michigan School Business Officials, Kalamazoo Public Schools, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan.

Waytrice Harris, a Detroit resident with two children in high school, is also participating in the lawsuit.

"I think it's an unfair practice to take public dollars and fund private schools that are already getting private dollars," said Harris, a member of 482 Forward, an education organizing group in Detroit. "I think our schools are so underfunded right now that we shouldn't be distracted by taking dollars and putting them somewhere else."

