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Michigan Proposal C, Prohibit Public Funds to Non-Public Schools Initiative (1970)
| Michigan Proposal C | |
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| Election date |
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| Topic School choice policy |
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| Status |
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| Type Initiated constitutional amendment |
Origin |
Michigan Proposal C was on the ballot as an initiated constitutional amendment in Michigan on November 3, 1970. It was approved.
A “yes” vote supported prohibiting the use of public funds for non-public schools. |
A “no” vote opposed prohibiting the use of public funds for non-public schools. |
Election results
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Michigan Proposal C |
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| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
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1,416,838 | 56.77% | ||
| No | 1,078,740 | 43.23% | ||
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Proposal C was as follows:
| “ | PROPOSAL C PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO PROHIBIT PUBLIC AID TO NON-PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND STUDENTS This amendment adds language to the constitution to: (a) Prohibit use of public funds to aid any non-public elementary or secondary school; (b) Prohibit use of public funds, excpet for transportation, to support the attendance of any students or the employment of any person at non-public schools or at any other location or institution where instruction is offered in whole or part to non-public school students; (c) Prohibit any payment, credit, tax benefit, exemption or deduction, tuition voucher, subsidy, grant or loan of public monies or property, direclty or indirectly, for the above purposes. Should this amendment be adopted? YES NO | ” |
Full Text
The full text of this measure is available here.
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article VIII, Michigan Constitution
The ballot initiative amended Section 2 of Article VIII of the Michigan Constitution. The following underlined language was added:[1]
Sec. 2.
The legislature shall maintain and support a system of free public elementary and secondary schools as defined by law. Every school district shall provide for the education of its pupils without discrimination as to religion, creed, race, color or national origin.
No public monies or property shall be appropriated or paid or any public credit utilized, by the legislature or any other political subdivision or agency of the state directly or indirectly to aid or maintain any private, denominational or other nonpublic, pre-elementary, elementary, or secondary school. No payment, credit, tax benefit, exemption or deductions, tuition voucher, subsidy, grant or loan of public monies or property shall be provided, directly or indirectly, to support the attendance of any student or the employment of any person at any such nonpublic school or at any location or institution where instruction is offered in whole or in part to such nonpublic school students. The legislature may provide for the transportation of students to and from any school.[2]
Path to the ballot
An initiated constitutional amendment is a citizen-initiated ballot measure that amends a state's constitution. Eighteen (18) states allow citizens to initiate constitutional amendments.
In Michigan, the number of signatures required for an initiated constitutional amendment is equal to 10% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. A simple majority vote is required for voter approval.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The Herald-Palladium, "Proposal C," accessed May 4, 2025
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source.
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State of Michigan Lansing (capital) |
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