By RONALD J. THERIOT JR., LAPLACE

DEAR EDITOR: President Bush accomplished something in December which Mr. Clinton may never have been able to achieve. With the passage of the new U.S. education act, the federal government has made another radical leap in seizing control of our public school systems and undermining the federal construction of our American system.

This effort which began in the mid-1960s under LBJ’s “Great Society” program, has no legal provision under the U.S. Constitution. Nowhere can it be found that the national government has been given the power by the states or the people to regulate or legislate the public school systems in our country.

The only areas in which the U.S. can control education is in the territories or in the District of Columbia. The 50 states themselves are the only legal entities with the power to control education in their respective states. The U.S. government can only legally exercise powers delegated to it by the Constitution. Education is not one of those powers. Nor has this authority been denied to the states. Therefore, it is clearly a state power only. This makes such entities as the U.S. Department of Education and federal grants for education patently illegal.

Mr. Bush claims that this new law is about accountability. No, the state are absolutely non-accountable to the national government as it concerns education. We, the people, are under no obligation to answer one whit to the U.S. government, as it pertains to our public schools.

Each state should set up schools according to how its people see fit. With 50 states, we should rightfully have 50 unique educational systems. Naturally, some states run their schools better than others. But that’s the beauty of a federal system. The good states will attract people and the poorly-run states will either shape up or lose population.

We can take a radical step forward in Louisiana by implementing three no-cost educational reforms. I believe one good step is to terminate any further federal funding for education in this state. Louisiana should announce that henceforth it shall accept no further U.S. funds, nor will it recognize any past or future outside regulations upon its educational system.

Secondly, Louisiana should repeal any and all compulsory education laws. In this way, only students who desire to attend school will do so, and those who attend with the intention of disrupting the schools will be invited to leave. Their education will be left up to their parents.

The third cost-free reform will be the provision that once high school students earn the required credits for graduation, they be allowed to receive their diplomas, regardless of age. The parents and the student will determine if that student is mature enough to leave school, which is probably the case if the kid earns the credits. These are my no-cost, pro-freedom proposals for now.