In mid-February, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed into law a universal private school voucher bill. Now, in subsequent weeks, both Idaho and Wyoming have adopted universal school choice, becoming the 14th and 15th states (respectively) to do so.
AFN talked with Andrew Handel, the director of the Education and Workforce Development Task Force of the American Legislative Exchange Council about the Idaho program.
"[This] is a huge win for Idaho families," Handel said. "And with the signing of this program into law, Idaho actually just became the 14th state in the country to have universal education freedom – and when we say 'universal,' we mean every single student in the state is going to have the ability to participate in that program."
Handel explained that under the Idaho program, low-income families can apply for advanced payments so they can get the money up front and use that to pay for tuition at a private school. "Other families [that] are able to pay that money … get it back on their tax returns later on in the year," he added.
The refundable tax credit under the Idaho law is $5,000 per student, with $7,500 available for students with disabilities.
"It's going to include homeschoolers, it's going to include any type of public or private school in the state. It's a fantastic program that puts parents first," said Handel.
Specifically, expenses that qualify for the tax credit include private school tuition, tutoring, assessments used to determine such things as college admission or certification exams, prep courses for standardized assessments, textbooks or curricula for K-12, and transportation costs to/from an educational facility.
According to Handel, universal school choice fundamentally recognizes that every child is going to have his or her own unique learning needs that may be better met at a public school – or at a nearby private school.
"So, why not create programs like this to make sure that … those kids have the same access to educational opportunities that are going to put them in the best position to succeed?" he asks.
The cost of the Idaho program is capped at $50 million.
On March 4, Gov. Mark Gordon of Wyoming signed into law his state's "Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act," which significantly expanded school choice by offering families $7,000 per child annually for K-12 non-public-school costs like tuition or tutoring.
