You pay taxes to support the PUBLIC school system, whether you DIRECTLY benefit from it or not.

If you don't believe it, consider that people without children still have to pay property tax. People whose children are no longer in school pay property tax. People whose children went to school in another state pay property tax. In most districts, businesses (which have no children) pay property taxes which go to schools -- all to support the local *public* schools, because it is in society's best interest to see that ALL of its citizens have at least a minimum education, regardless of means. This is especially justified for businesses who want their potential employees to have some functional skills, and businesses should be leading the opposition to voucher plans, because they will be most hurt by them.

Now, say you live in a district with 100,000 students. If you send your 2 kids to a private school, you have reduced the cost of running the public schools by a small amount -- somewhere around 1/50,000 of the total cost -- and that fact will be reflected in a smaller budget for schools, and lower taxes for you AND EVERYONE ELSE, by about the same proportionate amount. This is the only "voucher" you are entitled to, and it is automatically created in the current process of adjusting school budgets each year to reflect enrollment trends.