A new study released Tuesday questions whether Gov. Mark Sanford's "Put Parents In Charge" act would help public schools financially, as he claims. The plan would offer tuition tax credits for low- and middle-income parents who want to send their children to a private school, another public school or home school them.

Last year, Clemson economist Dr. Cotton Lindsay released a study of the plan that said public schools would benefit financially, because public schools would see some cost savings with fewer students.

The new study, funded by the South Carolina School Boards Association and the South Carolina Association of School Administrators, says the average school district could lose $4 million.

Dr. Harry Miley, the state's former chief economist, led the study released Tuesday. "If those students do migrate out, the schools will lose that state funding but they may not realize any cost savings," he says. "Therefore, they will not be fiscally better off."

He says he couldn't find any cost savings because most school expenses would still be there. Teacher salaries would be the same, as would the cost to heat or cool the school and for the electricity to light it. "If 20 students are in the class and 2 students leave and migrate to private schools, where are the cost savings?" he asks "We can't identify them, and we think that needs further study."

The South Carolina Policy Council, which sponsored the Clemson study, says this new report is flawed. The Clemson study came out last year and looked at last year's bill, while the plan introduced this year is different, says Ed McMullen, director of the Policy Council.

"They want to say that it's school buildings and light bills and all the things that will be jeopardized," McMullen says. "It's really administrators and bureaucrats who are in jeopardy under Put Parents In Charge." 

Since the favorable study was paid for by supporters of the plan, and the unfavorable study was sponsored by opponents, who are parents supposed to believe?

McMullen says, "We know what parents believe. Parents believe that they should have the ability to choose where their children go to school."

Miley says parents should read both studies and decide for themselves which one makes common sense.