Robert Torricelli: “within the next few days this Senate will vote upon a proposal that I have offered with Senator Coverdell, S.…”

“within the next few days this Senate will vote upon a proposal that I have offered with Senator Coverdell, S. 1113--A-plus savings accounts. It is a proposal I know that many Members of the Senate are considering for the first time. I take the floor today to ask them to look carefully at its many provisions. Like many Members of my party, I have great reservation about the movement to vouchers in the various States and by the Federal Government. It has always been my concern that vouchers not only invite constitutional challenge, but inevitably results in a movement of resources from the public schools, where they are already too scarce, to private schools. The issue in my mind is not to move resources from public to private schools, but to increase resources for all schools. That is why, although I differ with Senator Coverdell and other Members of the Senate on vouchers, we have come together as Democrats and Republicans, provoucher and antivoucher Senators, on the issue of the A-plus savings accounts. Let us look at the facts about these savings accounts. First, there is not the use of public money. This is money that an individual or their employer or their labor union can put in a savings account for the education of a child in grade school or high school, therefore, there is not a constitutional issue and there is not a diversion issue of public educational resources to private schools.”