Illinois is among the few states to offer no private school choice scholarships after killing its Invest in Kids tax-credit program in 2023. The new federal Educational Choice for Children Act would again give Illinois families access to educational options.
Illinois is one of the few states that doesn’t offer a private school-choice program after killing its tax-credit scholarships for low-income students, according to a new report.
But that could easily change, thanks to a new federal law.
Illinois is among 18 states that fail to offer private educational opportunities for families, according to the report by EdChoice. A federal program called the Educational Choice for Children Act offers a way to regain that advantage.
Congress hands hope to Illinois families
Illinois families may once again be able to access funds for educational options, but the same state leaders who took away the option in 2023 need to let those families receive the federal help.
The federal Educational Choice for Children Act will provide dollar-for-dollar federal tax credits up to $1,700 to individuals who contribute to scholarship-granting organizations. Starting in 2027, these scholarships could be used for tuition, tutoring or other education-related expenses, giving families greater freedom to shape their children’s learning.
The act could bring meaningful relief to Illinois parents. But Illinois must opt in to the program to allow students to access these scholarship funds.
Illinois leaders should opt into the ECCA and give students access to scholarship funds to help narrow the gap with its Midwest neighbors and the rest of the county, giving parents more control over their children’s education.
The program will cost the state nothing to join. Some of Illinois’ neighbors stand out for the private school choice options they offer to their residents, and the investments they are making in their future citizens.
Indiana offers three private school choice programs:
- Choice Scholarship Program providing vouchers averaging $6,264 in funds for private school students in 357 schools across the state in 2023–2024.
- Education Scholarship Account Program provides funds to students with special needs, averaging $11,601 per student for tuition, therapies and related expenses.
- School Scholarship Tax Credit gives individuals and businesses a 50% tax credit for donations to scholarship granting organizations, and it funded over 11,000 students in the 2022–2023 school year.
Iowa runs two private school choice programs:
- Education Savings Account Program, which provides direct education savings account deposits for tuition and approved expenses, with universal eligibility expanding to all Iowa students in the 2025–2026 school year.
- School Tuition Organization Tax Credit. Individuals and corporations are eligible for a tax credit worth 75% of the value of their contributions funding scholarships for low-income students that helps students “afford the schooling options that best fit their needs.”
Wisconsin offers some voucher programs to its students, providing funds for low-income students and students with disabilities to attend public schools which better serve their needs. Their flagship parental choice programs provide vouchers that operate as direct tuition payments to eligible families with maximum values of $10,237 for grades K-8 and $12,731 for grades 9-12.
Illinois once provided private school choice to low-income families
Illinois once had a modest school choice program through the Invest in Kids tax-credit scholarship.
That program offered a 75% tax credit for donations to scholarships helping low-income families. It allowed over 15,000 students in its final year to attend schools better suited to their needs. It was especially valuable for families in underperforming districts who could not otherwise afford tuition on their own, and recipients outscored their public school counterparts.
State lawmakers let the program die in 2023, leaving families without that lifeline and making Illinois land at the bottom of states for educational choice programs. Teachers unions dumped $1.5 million into lawmakers’ campaigns to kill the program they saw as competition to their education monopoly.
This hit low-income families hardest, as they have the least ability to supplement their children’s educations out of pocket.
But state leaders have a chance to fix the wrong done to students and their families. Joining the Educational Choice for Children Act will give Illinois children a chance to benefit from the tax-deductible donations made by Illinoisians, rather than letting that money flow to other states’ children.
Despite the teacher-union rhetoric, it takes nothing from Illinois students or public-school funding. However, rejecting the program certainly will hurt education in Illinois as those donated dollars will flow elsewhere.
