Current:Home > StocksMaine law thwarts impact of school choice decision, lawsuit says -OceanicInvest
Maine law thwarts impact of school choice decision, lawsuit says
View
Date:2025-04-18 12:38:31
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A Christian school at the center of a Supreme Court decision that required Maine to include religious schools in a state tuition program is appealing a ruling upholding a requirement that all participating facilities abide by a state antidiscrimination law.
An attorney for Crosspoint Church in Bangor accused Maine lawmakers of applying the antidiscrimination law to create a barrier for religious schools after the hard-fought Supreme Court victory.
“The Maine Legislature largely deprived the client of the fruits of their victory by amending the law,” said David Hacker from First Liberty Institute, which filed the appeal this week to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston. “It’s engineered to target a specific religious group. That’s unconstitutional.”
The lawsuit is one of two in Maine that focus on the collision between the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling and the state law requiring that schools participating in the tuition program abide by the Maine Human Rights Act, which includes protections for LGBTQ students and faculty.
Another lawsuit raising the same issues was brought on behalf of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland; a Roman Catholic-affiliated school, St. Dominic’s Academy in Auburn, Maine; and parents who want to use state tuition funds to send their children to St. Dominic’s. That case is also being appealed to the 1st Circuit.
Both cases involved the same federal judge in Maine, who acknowledged that his opinions served as a prelude to a “more authoritative ruling” by the appeals court.
The lawsuits were filed after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states cannot discriminate between secular and religious schools when providing tuition assistance to students in rural communities that don’t have a public high school. Before that ruling — in a case brought on behalf of three families seeking tuition for students to attend a Crosspoint-affiliated school — religious schools were excluded from the program.
The high court’s decision was hailed as a victory for school choice proponents but the impact in Maine has been small. Since the ruling, only one religious school, Cheverus High School, a Jesuit college preparatory school in Portland, has participated in the state’s tuition reimbursement plan, a state spokesperson said.
veryGood! (2)
Related
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Steward Health Care files a lawsuit against a US Senate panel over contempt resolution
- Cardi B Details Getting Another Round of Her Butt Injections Removed
- Seminole Hard Rock Tampa evacuated twice after suspicious devices found at the casino
- 'Survivor' 47 finale, part one recap: 2 players were sent home. Who's left in the game?
- Exclusive: Disney Store's Holiday Shop Is Here With Magical Gifts for Every Fan, From Pixar to Marvel
- Inside Frances Bean Cobain's Unique Private World With Riley Hawk
- ‘Sing Sing’ actor exonerated of murder after nearly 24 years in prison
- Tarte Shape Tape Concealer Sells Once Every 4 Seconds: Get 50% Off Before It's Gone
- Accused Los Angeles bus hijacker charged with murder, kidnapping
Ranking
- Intellectuals vs. The Internet
- Halloween costumes for 'Fallout,' 'The Boys' and more Prime Video shows: See prices, ideas, more
- Halloween costumes for 'Fallout,' 'The Boys' and more Prime Video shows: See prices, ideas, more
- Major League Baseball scraps criticized All-Star Game uniforms and goes back to team jerseys
- Former Syrian official arrested in California who oversaw prison charged with torture
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Showstoppers
- Biden says Olympians represented ‘the very best of America’
- Kris Kristofferson was ‘a walking contradiction,’ a renegade and pilgrim surrounded by friends
Recommendation
From family road trips to travel woes: Americans are navigating skyrocketing holiday costs
Steward Health Care files a lawsuit against a US Senate panel over contempt resolution
Ariana Grande Claps Back at the Discourse Around Her Voice, Cites Difference for Male Actors
Here’s how Helene and other storms dumped a whopping 40 trillion gallons of rain on the South
Elon Musk's skyrocketing net worth: He's the first person with over $400 billion
Epic Games sues Google and Samsung over phone settings, accusing them of violating antitrust laws
How one preschool uses PAW Patrol to teach democracy
Inside Frances Bean Cobain's Unique Private World With Riley Hawk