Sandoval rolls the dice

Gov. Brian Sandoval leads the center of the gambling universe in the United States, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to find he’s a gambling man. Because the governor has just rolled the dice in a very high-stakes game.

Despite pressure from conservatives, Sandoval declined to add the issue of funding for his stalled school choice plan to the agenda of this week’s special session. It’s a decision that could end up killing the program for good, depending on the results of November’s election.

First, a little background.

The 2015 Legislature passed the Education Savings Accounts program, or ESAs, on an entirely party-line vote. They allow parents to take a large portion of state per-pupil spending and use it for any educational expense, from books to tutoring to tuition at private schools.

Two lawsuits were filed to stop the program, one of which contended state education money could be used only for public schools, and another arguing that a constitutional ban on using state education funds for “sectarian purposes” prohibited school money from flowing to religious institutions.

But the Nevada Supreme Court rejected those arguments last week. Justices found only that the particular way lawmakers funded ESAs violated the constitution, but they provided a virtual legislative road map to overcoming the problem.

By happy coincidence, the governor was about to call the Legislature into special session. Conservatives asked: Why not deal with the ESA issue at the same time?

Good question.

I should stipulate that I’ve opposed ESAs on the grounds that our existing public school system needs all the attention, all the reform and all the money it can get if we expect better results. I’m also extremely skeptical that public funds can wind up in the coffers of religious institutions without offending the constitution.

But the court has ruled. And it makes sense that conservatives want to move with dispatch — they know that the current GOP majority in both houses of the Legislature may be lost after the Nov. 8 election, which makes repairing the ESA program much more uncertain.

But Sandoval insists there “may be a path for a legislative solution,” although “such a solution is complex and must be well thought-out to meet constitutional muster.”

A well-thought out solution to a complex constitutional problem, fashioned by the Nevada Legislature? Oh, why start now, governor?

And again, on Oct. 5, Sandoval allowed that “protecting this program is a top priority for me. There is simply not enough time to add it to next week’s special session with full confidence that a rushed outcome will pass constitutional muster.” Instead, Sandoval said, he’ll put state Sen. Scott Hammond — the father of ESAs — in charge of a working group designed to unravel funding issues in time for the 2017 session.

Sandoval is right about the solution’s complexity, and the need for proper time and attention. And the governor may also be legitimately worried that the politics of ESAs could disrupt the special session’s other business.

But if Democrats take over one or both houses of the Legislature, the politics of ESAs become infinitely more complex. It’s possible Sandoval and the Republicans could still work out a deal, but Democrats never liked this idea and the court’s ruling has given them a second chance to kill ESAs.

“The idea that we don’t need to deal with this now is nonsense,” said Ira Hansen, a conservative assemblyman from Sparks, speaking for many in Nevada.

I suppose Hansen, unlike Sandoval, is just not a gambling man.

Steve Sebelius is a Review-Journal political columnist. Follow him on Twitter (@SteveSebelius) or reach him at 702-387-5276 or SSebelius@reviewjournal.com.