Governor Cooper Vetos Bill for Additional Funding for North Carolina School Choice Programs

Raleigh, NC (September 20, 2024) -- Mike Long, President of Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina, released the following statement to respond to Governor Cooper's veto of a bill that would fully fund the Opportunity Scholarship Program waitlist and add funds to the Education Student Accounts (ESA+) Program. 

Make no mistake about it, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has been opposed to the Opportunity Scholarship Program since day one, calling it an “expense we should stop in our state,” and today following through by vetoing House Bill 10, pointing to the Opportunity Scholarship Program is his reason why.

While Governor Cooper continues to stand opposed to parental school choice calling the Opportunity Scholarship Program a “scheme” we know firsthand that tens of thousands of families in our state have benefited from this program, while we also saw historic demand for the program this year.

Our legislature is choosing, through the expansion of the Opportunity Scholarship Program and Special Needs ESA, to invest in students, while Governor Cooper would rather our state invest in systems. The time to invest in students over systems is now, and we encourage leaders in the General Assembly to override the Governor’s veto of House Bill 10 as soon as possible.