Earlier this year, the state legislature narrowly passed the first-ever statewide private school voucher law in the country. Voters will have a chance to weigh in on it this Election Day. When they vote on Referendum 1, Utahns will choose between voting for unaccountable private school vouchers or against a badly flawed law that will divert resources from our public schools.

Utah's voucher law is full of flaws and loopholes. It does not hold private voucher schools accountable to taxpayers, has few academic standards to ensure educational success for students and offers a false choice for too many Utah families who -- even with vouchers -- wouldn't be able to access or afford private schools.

Utah's voucher plan includes almost no guarantees to hold private schools accountable to taxpayers. As we've seen in other states that have limited voucher programs already in place, this often leads to fraud and abuse that has cost taxpayers millions and has threatened the educational opportunities of children.

Private voucher schools have to meet very few academic standards that states typically rely on to measure performance and progress of students, teachers and schools. There are virtually no standards or minimum requirements for whom schools can hire as teachers. Schools could even hire teachers who don't hold a college degree or a state teaching license. The law also doesn't require private voucher schools to meet the same coursework or attendance standards that public schools must meet.

Utah's voucher plan will not help the majority of Utah families. Even with a voucher, most Utah families will not be able to afford expensive private school tuition. Further, more than half of the state's counties have no private schools at all.

Referendum 1 proponents might suggest student performance improves in private voucher schools. Research does not support this assertion. A 2006 U.S. Department of Education study of Washington, D.C.'s voucher program and a 2001 U.S. General Accounting Office study of Cleveland and Milwaukee's voucher schools found no significant differences between private school and public school students in terms of academic achievement.

On October 3rd, an Economic Policy Institute study of the effects of vouchers on public schools in Milwaukee found that -- contrary to the assertions of voucher proponents -- private voucher schools have had no positive effect on their public counterparts.

Utah has failed to make the investments our students who attend public schools deserve. Today, Utah class sizes are the largest in the nation. Utah also ranks dead last in the nation in spending per student. And yet, math and reading scores are up and public school students are outperforming private schools students in math and science.

More public schools than private schools offer AP and Utah is among the best in the nation in students receiving a high score on AP calculus exams. Utah even has the third highest percentage of graduating seniors passing AP tests.

Instead of giving taxpayer dollars to unaccountable private voucher schools, we should be investing more in our public schools that serve 96 percent of Utah's children. We must work to reduce class size, buy textbooks and supplies and attract strong, qualified teachers to our schools.

Utah schools face challenges, but instead of addressing them by investing in our public schools, state legislators have presented us with a private school voucher law with too many flaws, loopholes and unanswered questions. For these reasons, Utahns should vote against Referendum 1 on Nov. 6.

RaDene Hatfield is president-elect of Provo Council PTA