(Columbia) April 7, 2005 - A bill that would give parents a tax break to help pay private school tuition passed a House subcommittee on Thursday. The bill heads to the full Ways and Means Committee after passing the subcommittee on a three-to-two vote.

Subcommittee members passed the legislation during a hastily scheduled meeting.

The legislation has sparked contentious debate on education in South Carolina. A public hearing on Wednesday on the legislation drew a crowd of supporters and opponents.

The Put Parents in Charge Act would allow parents to use tax credits to help cover the cost of transferring their children from public school to another public or private school. Parents could even use the credits to start their own schools.

For the first time Wednesday, some of those parents had the chance to tell lawmakers how they feel about the idea.

Hollie Bennett made the drive from Rock Hill with her daughter Cason, "Where our schools fail is addressing the individuality of student learning, the individuality of student learning, the individuality of parental needs." Bennett came to Columbia to speak in favor of the bill. She sat in a packed committee room for what was supposed to be a public hearing but what quickly became a forum for politicians.

Rep. Ken Clark spoke about his position, "Creating a dual system of schools is not only wrong, but can lead to two results, a return to segregation of our people and a further deepening of the gulf between the haves and the have nots."

Superintendent of Education Inez Tenenbaum is also against the bill, "It does nothing, absolutely nothing to improve education. It is nothing less than an abandonment of our public schools."

But as Governor Sanford's education advisor talked up the finer points of the bill, she gave up some of her time, "Now I yield the remainder of my time to the Governor."

In an unusual move, the Governor addressed the House subcommittee, "It strikes me that God makes every child incredibly different."

Sanford believes every parent should be able to put their child in the school that best suits their needs. The "Put Parents in Charge Act" is one of Governor Mark Sanford's top legislative priorities. The Republican says he wants to take politics out of the education system and replace it with the power of the market place.

Put Parents in Charge would provide about $3,000 to help parents like Hollie Bennett, "I'm a parent with three children in public school and I believe while our schools are good, we need reform in South Carolina in public education. I believe this bill is going to do it."

Opponents claim the bill will take much needed funding away from public schools.

The Revenue Department would be responsible for implementing and overseeing the credit. Orangeburg Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter says she is concerned the agency would have to hire new staff. Agency director Burnie Maybank says the bill may place additional duties on some of the agency's 600 workers.

After the passage in the subcommittee it moves to the full House and Ways committee.

The road to House floor after that gets more difficult. Legislators are considering several amendments to the bill, including eliminating an income cap for eligibility and allowing only students in failing or unsatisfactory schools to transfer.

Reported by Craig Melvin
Updated 3:41pm by Chantelle Janelle