Voucher Foes Far Ahead in Fund Raising

Backers of the school voucher initiative continue to be vastly outspent by opponents, raising $1.3 million to the $4 million raised by foes during the four-week period ending Oct. 16, the latest campaign finance reports show.

With the election a week from today, the combined fund-raising by proponents and opponents of Proposition 174 tops $18 million, making it the seventh most expensive initiative campaign in state history.

Proposition 174’s opponents have raised more than $14.6 million this year, compared to $2.4 million raised by proponents. Since the start of the campaign in late 1991, the foes have raised more than $16 million.

The largest single donor remains the California Teachers Assn. The CTA has contributed more than $12.3 million to defeat the initiative, which seeks to give parents annual vouchers worth about $2,600 for each child’s tuition at private schools. The other major contributors to the anti-voucher campaign have been unions representing public school employees and administrators.

After the public school unions, the two largest contributors to the No on 174 campaign during the latest reporting period were California Casualty Insurance, which gave $225,000, and Delta Dental, which gave $75,000.

Representatives of each company said they provide insurance to school employees, and gave to the No on 174 campaign for business reasons. California Casualty has represented the California Teachers Assn. for 42 years.

The reports showed that proponents spent $937,000 between Sept. 19 and Oct. 16, with much of it paying the cost of airing their first ads. The opponents, who have been airing radio and television spots since September, spent $1.7 million during the latest reporting period.

Proponents received a boost from the California Republican Party, which gave $401,000 for mass mailings. The state GOP supports Proposition 174, even though Republican Gov. Pete Wilson opposes it.

The proponents’ latest filing also shows that John Walton of Bentonville, Ark., an heir to the Wal-Mart fortune, gave $250,000. J. Patrick Rooney, chairman of Golden Rule Insurance Co. in Indianapolis, gave $100,000.

The influence of wealthy libertarians and conservative Christians continued to be reflected in the latest Yes on 174 report. Libertarians helped write the initiative and are involved in the campaign.

Richard Mellon Scaife, a Pennsylvania newspaper publisher, donated $50,000. Scaife is part of a family that donates heavily to conservative and libertarian think tanks, including the Reason Foundation of Los Angeles. Richard Dennis, a Chicago commodities trader who is on Reason’s board of directors, donated $25,000.

The American Alliance for Better Schools, a Chicago-based group that is pushing voucher initiatives in several states, gave $25,000.