Gov. Youngkin Launches Campaign to Press Governors to Accept Privately Funded School Choice Scholarships

Former Governor Glenn Youngkin of Virginia. CREDIT: Gage Skidmore/FLICKR

Former Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has launched a new policy organization, Empowering America’s Parents, that will promote school choice and urge every governor to participate in the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit.

This new organization plans a multimillion-dollar campaign aimed at voters in states whose governors have yet to embrace the program, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2027. To date, 20 states have not signed up for these privately funded scholarships, even though participating in the program will not take a dollar away from public-school budgets.

“Bottom line, every Governor in America should opt-in to the Education Freedom Tax Credit,” Youngkin said. “If they blow this opportunity, they’ll be leaving kids behind in their state while children in other states get the benefit.”

The program offers taxpayers a federal tax credit of up to $1,700 for donations to nonprofit organizations that provide K-12 scholarships. These scholarships can help families pay for private-school tuition, tutoring, educational materials, disability services, and other approved expenses. But students can benefit only if their governor opts in.

Thirty governors have now done so. As Protect The 1st recently noted, Democratic Govs. Kathy Hochul of New York and Jared Polis of Colorado have joined Republican governors in accepting the program. We’ve also done our share to encourage our followers to contact governors – ranging from Gavin Newsom of California to Wes Moore of Maryland and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania – to sign up for the Education Freedom Tax Credit.

Others may follow. Education Week reports that Democratic Govs. Josh Green of Hawaii, Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, and Tina Kotek of Oregon may be reconsidering earlier decisions not to participate.

School choice need not be a partisan issue. Parents across the political spectrum want the freedom to choose an education that reflects their children’s needs and their families’ values – whether that means sending their children to a religious academy, an arts-focused school, or a science-focused school; obtaining specialized services or receiving supplemental help while attending public school. Protect The 1st sees this choice as fundamental to a First Amendment society, in which educational pluralism, grounded in strong state standards, promotes a citizenry that makes the most of our right to free speech.
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The Education Freedom Tax Credit, created by the Educational Choice for Children Act, gives families resources to exercise that freedom, without taking a dime from state or local public school budgets. Youngkin’s new organization will educate governors about this program and ensure they cannot quietly deny their constituents this opportunity.

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