CCV Files with Ohio Supreme Court for Expedited Hearing
CCV Files Motion with Ohio Supreme Court for Expedited Hearings
73 more individuals look to join suit against the state as CCV asks the Supreme Court to urgently consider case.
COLUMBUS – A coalition of schools, families, and advocates have filed a motion for expedited hearings before the Ohio Supreme Court to decide whether the state can lawfully block families from accessing the EdChoice program.
Along with the motion for oral argument and expedited calendar for resolution, 73 more individuals have stepped forward to urge the court to stop the Ohio Department of Education from unlawfully blocking families from accessing EdChoice for the 2020-2021 school year.
The motion is a part of a lawsuit filed in February on behalf of Citizens for Community Values, two Christian schools, and 14 families. The lawsuit explains that the General Assembly passed a law earlier this year that has caused incredible disruption to schools and families by stripping children of scholarship opportunities they depended upon to access the best education that meets their needs.
“It’s far too easy for folks in Columbus to get disconnected from the real lives of families across Ohio,” said Aaron Baer, President of Citizens for Community Values, which is also a party in the lawsuit. “These families’ lives have been turned upside down by the unconstitutional law passed by the General Assembly earlier this year. Their only hope, now, is that the Court will intervene and right the wrong, or that the General Assembly will do the right thing, and protect their right to the scholarship.”
The lawsuit, State v DeWine, was originally filed as a mandamus action to the Ohio Supreme Court on February 3.
There are two primary claims against the state:
SB 120, which blocks all families who are assigned to schools on the “EdChoice Designated list” from enrolling or re-enrolling in the program, did not have an emergency clause, and therefore the Ohio Department of Education should not have started blocking families from accessing the program on February 1st.
The state has caused incredible harm and created chaos and disruption in the lives of families and schools by stripping them of scholarships that they were guaranteed in November 2019.
The families, schools, and CCV are being represented by attorneys Brian Fox and Michael Roberts of Graydon Head and Ritchey, LLP.
You can read the filing online here.
For more information, contact Citizens for Community Values at info@ccv.org, or 513.733.5775.
As Ohio’s Family Policy Council, Citizens for Community Values seeks the good of our neighbors throughout Ohio by advocating for public policy that reflects the truth of the Gospel. We endeavor to create an Ohio where God’s blessings of life, family, and religious freedom are treasured, respected, and protected.
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