Overview
- The program offers a nonrefundable, dollar‑for‑dollar federal credit up to $1,700 per taxpayer for donations to nonprofit scholarship‑granting organizations, with credits claimable starting in the 2027 tax year.
- Scholarships can cover private school tuition, including religious schools, as well as tutoring, uniforms, technology, transportation, after‑school programs, and services for students with disabilities.
- Eligibility is capped at families earning up to 300% of area median income, and the federal law does not set a specific scholarship amount or an overall budget ceiling.
- Eighteen of the participating or intended states are led by Republicans, four Democratic governors have declined (Hawaii, New Mexico, Oregon, Wisconsin), and Colorado’s Jared Polis is the notable Democratic opt‑in.
- Alaska, Colorado, Nebraska, and North Dakota would see their first full private‑choice programs, while political fights continue elsewhere, including legislative pushes to require participation and New York’s governor withholding a decision pending federal guidance.