(Harrisburg) -- The state Senate Education Committee has approved a measure that contains a limited school vouchers program and charter school reform. The proposal that now goes to the full Senate. The plan restricts school vouchers to students from low- to middle-income families who attend or live within the district of one of the state’s 143 failing schools. Sponsor Senator Jeff Piccola, a Dauphin County Republican, calls the plan "vastly scaled back," and argues it’s not as if the reforms leave failing schools with no public funding. "The very nature of this bill constitutes a wakeup call to those schools the administrators of those school districts," he says, "Those school buildings should immediately begin asking themselves the question, 'why are parents taking their kids out, why are kids leaving?'" School districts would be able to convert a public school into a charter under the bill, which also calls for charter school transparency and accountability rules. The measure would expand the Educational Improvement Tax Credit program for businesses that fund private school scholarships and public school supplemental programs. EITC would eventually see its funding go from $75 million to $125 million, with the possibility of additional increases.