Rep. Huffman Statement on SCOTUS Religious Charter School Ruling

May 23, 2025

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (CA-02) released the following statement in response to the Supreme Court of the United States ruling in Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond to uphold the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s decision on religious charter schools:

“Yesterday, American democracy narrowly escaped an extreme violation of church-state separation. While I’m pleased that the Supreme Court ruled to block the State of Oklahoma from sponsoring and funding the nation’s first religious charter school, I am deeply concerned by the Court’s split decision. Publicly funded religious charter schools are a clear violation of the Constitution’s foundational principle – the separation of church and state – and there should be no ambiguity on this issue.

“While yesterday’s outcome leaves the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling to ban religious charter schools in place, we still need to face the reality that four justices voted in favor of this violation, signaling a significant and alarming shift. The law is clear: charter schools are public schools and, therefore, must be secular and open to all students regardless of their faith or belief system. The 4-4 split decision poses a serious threat to the future of public education and the longstanding constitutional commitment to religious neutrality in government-funded institutions.

“Religious charter schools not only undermine the First Amendment, but they also set a dangerous precedent for the entanglement of religion in publicly supported education. American taxpayers should not be forced to fund religious schools that indoctrinate students into one faith and discriminate against students and staff.”

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