Education Freedom Tax Credits Put American Families First

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The America First Policy Institute (AFPI) applauds President Trump and Education Secretary McMahon for highlighting the importance of state participation in the historic Education Freedom Tax Credit, which will help ensure families across the country can access greater educational opportunity.

“President Trump is once again putting parents and students first by making clear that every governor has a choice: open the door to greater educational opportunity or leave families in their state behind,” said Erika Donalds, Chair of AFPI’s Center for Education Opportunity. “AFPI has been leading the charge to ensure scholarships reach as many students as possible, from urging governors to opt in early, to working with the Trump Administration to ensure implementation allows education dollars to follow students to the learning environments that work best for them.”

Created through President Trump’s Working Families Tax Cuts Act, the Education Freedom Tax Credit allows taxpayers to receive a dollar-for-dollar federal tax credit of up to $1,700 for contributions to Scholarship Granting Organizations. Those organizations can provide scholarships for a wide range of K–12 educational expenses, including tuition, tutoring, homeschooling, and other educational support.

AFPI has warned that state leaders who choose not to participate risk sending billions of dollars in educational support elsewhere. AFPI estimates that non-participating states could forgo nearly $23 billion in tax-credit-eligible charitable contributions over three years, potentially representing more than 4 million scholarships for students.

Thirty states have already made an advance election to participate in the Education Freedom Tax Credit. The remaining governors should not stand between parents and an opportunity that costs taxpayers in their state nothing. Now is the time for every governor to act, opt in, and give families the education opportunity they deserve