Pennsylvania field hearing spotlights federal education tax credit

The Education and Workforce Committee held a field hearing in Pennsylvania on expanding education options, with its statement urging the state to join a new federal tax-credit program for donations to scholarship-granting organizations. The program is set to begin in January and could help pay for a range of K-12 education expenses.

Pennsylvania is among 19 states that have not opted into the program, the committee said. Governors must choose whether their states participate. The committee argued that opting in would make scholarship funding available to families and said 71% of Pennsylvania voters want the state to take part.

The hearing also addressed broader school-choice options, including charter schools, private-school scholarships, microschools and homeschooling. The committee linked its case for expanding those options to low national proficiency rates in eighth-grade reading and math, while presenting school choice as a way to support students and families.

How the tax credit would work

Under the Education Freedom Tax Credit, filers could receive up to $1,700 off their federal tax bill for donations to scholarship-granting organizations. Those organizations would provide scholarships for expenses that could include private-school tuition, homeschooling costs or enrichment programs at public schools. The committee said billions of dollars are projected to become available for scholarships in coming years.

The committee described the credit as part of the Working Families Tax Cuts package and said it would begin in January. The statement did not specify a calendar year for the start date or explain how scholarship amounts would be set for individual students.

What the committee said about school choice

The committee cited 75 private-school choice programs in 34 states serving about 1.5 million students in the last academic year, nearly three times the number of students served four years earlier. It also said charter-school enrollment has grown to nearly 4 million students since 2005, when the number of charter schools began doubling.

The committee pointed to research it said finds academic and graduation benefits for students in private-school choice programs, as well as competition that can benefit traditional public schools. Its statement did not name the hearing’s witnesses or specify the Pennsylvania location where the hearing took place.

This report draws on information from EIN Presswire.