US House passes DC voucher program

Low-income families would be able to continue to send their children to a school of their choice under a measure the U.S. House passed Wednesday to reauthorize the D.C. voucher program.

The House voted 240-191 to continue the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program for an additional five years and bar limits on the number of students eligible. The program provides needs-based vouchers for students from low-income families to attend a private school of their choice.

The bill is a victory for Ohio Republican John Boehner, who first introduced the legislation when he became speaker of the House in 2011. It will also be his last bill — he announced he will leave office at the end of the month.

Boehner, who attended Catholic schools, said the bill is personal to him and called the program the “little engine that could.”

“We owe these kids a chance, a fighting chance, at success,” he said on the House floor before the vote.

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