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our impact across america

Last year was a historic year for expanding educational opportunity in America. As support for school choice soars, lawmakers are finally listening to families and passing legislation to expand or create new programs to fund students instead of systems. 

Discover school choice victories and progress in 2021-22.

0 %
OF PARENTS SUPPORT SCHOOL CHOICE PROGRAMS
0
VOICES FOR CHOICE RALLYING THE MOVEMENT
0 K
students in school choice programs nationwide

Active Legislation (Not Passed)

HB2224 – ESA

HB2014 – Tax-Credit

HB2154 – Tax-Credit

2021 – New Tax Credit Scholarship Program

Details

  • SB 680 creates a $2 million tax credit program.
  • Students eligible at or below 200% of poverty
  • 100% tax credit for donors.
  • Expands the Succeed Scholarship Program eligibility to include the children of active-duty or reserve members of the U.S. military.

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2021 – Scholarship Expansion and New Education Savings Account Program

Details

  • SB48/HB 7045 streamlines Florida’s choice programs and application processes.
  • All students with disabilities enrolled in the Family Empowerment Scholarship program will be able to access a customized education.
  • Expands household income eligibility as well as increases the number of scholarships available each year so that tens of thousands of more children will have access to educational choices.
  • Increases the funded scholarship amounts by aligning the awarded amount with the public school per-student funding levels.
  • Need-based scholarships may be used for digital devices and internet access.

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2022 – Family Empowerment Scholarship Improvements

  • Makes FES program improvements. 

  • Includes increased transportation funding for public school choice options.

2021 – Special Needs Voucher Expansion

Details

  • Senate Bill 47 expands the eligible pool of students for the special needs scholarship program to include those students with a 504 plan AND specific conditions.
  • These changes will increase the number of Georgia students eligible for the program by approximately 50,000 or more children.

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2022 – Tax Credit Scholarship Program Expansion

Details

  • House Bill 517 increased the annual cap to $120 million, allowing more than 4,000 new students the opportunity to receive a scholarship.
  • House Bill 517 also removed a harmful sunset provision from the program.
  • The state budget also increased funding for charter school facilities by $3 million, for a program total of $8.5 million.

2021 – Invest in Kids Tax Credit Scholarship Program

Details

  • Extended program sunset by one year.

2022 – Invest in Kids Tax Credit Scholarship Program Improvements

Details

  • The improvements codify scholarship super-priority status for returning eligible students and allow schools to set a lower maximum scholarship amount for students eligible for a 75% or 50% scholarship.

2021 – Voucher and Tax Credit Scholarship Expansion and New Education Savings Account Program

Details

  • Passed as part of the State Biennial Budget.
  • Voucher and tax credit eligibility increased to 300% of the amount to qualify for Free or Reduced Lunch.
  • All eligible voucher students will now qualify for a 90% (of state funding) scholarship.
  • Tax Credit cap increases to $17.5M in FY 22 and $18.5M in FY 23.
  • New $10M special needs ESA to be implemented in the 22-23 school year.
  • Increases the per student charter and innovation network grant to $1,000 in FY 22 and $1,250 in FY 23.

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2021 – Tax Credit Scholarship Expansion

Details

  • Increases the cap on the scholarship program from $15 million to $20 million on January 1, 2022 – the largest ever increase in the scholarship program’s history.
  • Tax credit for donations increased from 65% to 75%.
  • Doubling of the parental tuition tax credit from $250 to $500 per student.
  • Makes homeschool families eligible for the tax credit.

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2021 – Tax Credit Scholarship Expansion

Details

  • Removes the “at-risk” requirement for student eligibility.
  • Removes limitation that only elementary schools can receive scholarship students.

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2021 – New Education Savings Account Program

Details

  • Creates a $25 million tax credit ESA program.
  • Students whose family income is equal to or less than 175% of that required for free or reduced lunch eligible for the program.
  • Private school choice would be available to students in counties with a population more than 90,000.
  • Kentucky becomes the 28th state in the country with a private school choice program.

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2021 – Louisiana Scholarship Program

Details

  • Expands school choice for families whose students are enrolled in “D” or “F” public schools by allowing them to select an “A”, “B”, or “C” rated school within the district as long as there is capacity for the student.
  • Authorizes appeals to Louisiana’s Board of Elementary and Secondary Education by parents of students who are denied enrollment into their public school of choice.
  • Revises eligibility criteria for school participation in the Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence Program (Louisiana Scholarship Program).
  • Makes the program more accountable and ensures students receive the highest quality education.
  • The Louisiana Scholarship Program currently serves more than 6,100 students in 130 schools.

2021 – Broadening Options and Opportunities for Students Today (BOOST) Program

Details

  • Fully funds the Broadening Options and Opportunities for Students Today (BOOST) Program, increasing program funding from $7.5 million to $10 million.

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2021 – Tax Credit funded ESA

Details

  • Creates a $25 million Education Savings Account program that provides eligible students $6,375 for educational expenses to attend the public, charter, virtual, private or home school of their choice.
  • Eligible students include any student who attended public school in the previous year or is entering school for the first time.
  • Students with an IEP or a family income below Free and Reduced Price Lunch would be given first preference; children in a family making less than 200% of Free and Reduced-Price Lunch would be given second preference and all other eligible students would come after them.
  • The $25 million program is funded by a 100% tax credit.

2021 – Tax Credit Scholarship and Education Savings Account

Details

  • Increases maximum tax credit donors can receive from $150 to $200,000.
  • Program cap increased to $2 million in 2023, with the ability to increase the future cap by 20% per year if donations to the program exceed 80% of the limit.

2021 – Tax Credit Scholarship Expansion

Details

  • The Opportunity Scholarship Program will be expanded to $22.8 million for the next biennium and a harmful provision preventing children from entering the program was erased.

2021 – Education Savings Account

Details

  • The Education Freedom Accounts can be used for tuition, tutoring, online learning, textbooks, and other educational needs.
  • Families earning up to 300% of the federal poverty line are eligible for the program.
  • The State Department of Education projects the expansion will save the state more than $350 million over the next decade.

2021 – Opportunity Scholarship Program and Children with Disabilities Grant Program

Details

  • The 2021-22 budget expands eligibility of the Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP) and raises the income threshold to qualify for the program from 150 percent to 175 percent of the income to qualify for the federal free and reduced lunch program.
  • The budget increases the OSP scholarship amount to 90 percent of the state per pupil expenditure for traditional public schools – estimated to be $5,850 per year.
  • Increases the state’s year appropriation from $10 million to $15 million per year through the 2031-32 school year.
  • Combines the Children with Disabilities Grant and Education Savings Account program into one program: the North Carolina Personal Education Students Accounts for Children with Disabilities Program, effective for the 2022 – 23 school year.
  • Students with especially severe disabilities can qualify for aid up to $17,000 per student.

2021 – Ohio Expands Educational Opportunity Through Passage of State Budget

Details

  • EdChoice and Cleveland Scholarships increase to $5,500 per pupil in grades K-8 and $7,500 per pupil in grades 9-12.
  • Expands scholarship eligibility to include siblings of current scholarship students, students in foster and kinship care, and students entering 9th grade.
  • Increases the value of special needs scholarships.
  • Eliminates deductions from districts’ state aid and instead directly funds EdChoice and Cleveland scholarship programs and charter schools.
  • Doubles facility funding to brick and mortar charter schools to $500 per pupil.
  • Invests $54 million in high-quality charter schools through the Quality Community School Support.
  • Creates a $750 state tax credit for individual contributions made to Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGO). Existing or newly formed SGOs may make contributions to tuition accounts for students enrolled at a private school.
  • Creates the ACE Education Savings Account program to provide $500 for education expenses for students with income levels below 300% FPL.
  • Eliminates geographic restrictions on the location of charter schools, essentially moving to direct funding of scholarship programs and charter schools.

2021 – Tax Credit Scholarship Expansion

Details

  • Increases the amount of tax credits available for private school scholarship program donations from $3.5 million annually to $25 million per year.

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2021 – Expansion to Tax Credit Scholarship Program

Details

  • The K-12 Educational Improvement Tax Credit program will increase by $40 million making it $175 million in total.
  • This expansion will empower an estimated 13,000 additional PA kids with scholarship opportunities, no matter their ZIP codes.

2021 – Tax Credit Scholarship Expansion

Details

  • The bill removes the requirement that an eligible student needs to have attended a public school in the prior year or that they be entering Kindergarten, first grade or ninth grade.
  • Now any income eligible child in any grade, including one already in private school, is eligible to receive a scholarship.

2022 – Tax Credit Scholarship Expansion

Details

  • SB71 increases the tax credit scholarship cap from $2 million to $3.5 million.
  • Additionally, it allows children in foster care to participate in the program.

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2021 – Individualized Education Account ProgramDetails

  • Clarifies that the distribution of funds made to, or on behalf of, students participating in the Individualized Education Account (IEA) program are exempt from state and local taxation.

2022 – Special Needs ESA Program Expansion

Details

  • Expands Tennessee’s existing Special Needs ESA program to include those with dyslexia. 

2022 – Special Needs Opportunity Scholarship Program

Details

  • Expands the eligibility criteria for Utah’s special needs tax-credit program. 

2021 – New Education Savings Account Program

Details

  • Establishes the Hope Scholarship, which allows students leaving the public school system to use up to $4,600 for private school tuition, homeschooling costs, or other educational expenses.
  • This ESA program is available to 90 percent of students in the state.

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