Commentary: SB 460 oversteps in attempt to regulate private and parochial school vaccination decisions

Senator Tom Takubo recognized this overreach and attempted to correct it in committee by proposing an amendment that would have allowed private schools to control their own policies. His amendment would have left the choice to each school: allow exemptions or not. This is the best solution, as it would let the market determine the fate of these institutions based on decisions made by their governing boards.

If a school permits exemptions, some parents may withdraw their vaccinated children. Conversely, if a school disallows exemptions, it may struggle to grow enrollment. This dynamic ensures that parents—not the government—decide the outcome by voting with their tuition dollars.

Instead, we have a supposedly conservative state senate that believes it should dictate the policies of private institutions. Nothing could be a greater infringement on freedom. Some have invoked the Constitution’s religious liberties and freedoms of speech and religion to justify this intrusion, but such arguments miss the mark. These constitutional protections exist to guard against government overreach, not to regulate private sector decisions. The correct role of government is to step back and allow natural consequences to shape outcomes, as described above.

A healthy debate on vaccines is fair. A debate on the impact of such policies on public schools is fair. But our state senate has crossed a far more significant line—one that extends beyond the vaccine issue. Without immediate correction, West Virginia will be in the business of imposing government controls on private enterprise. This measure should not be allowed to stand, as its continuation threatens the very foundation of freedom.