I am writing in opposition to the use of federal tax dollars for the new school voucher program established under Section 25F of the Internal Revenue Code.

From 2018-2024, Illinois had a state-run school voucher program in the form of a tax credit scholarship program, like the new federal voucher program. Under Illinois' tax credit scholarship program, millions of dollars were diverted with minimal oversight or accountability to private schools, 95% of which were religious. The majority of schools receiving voucher dollars had policies that discriminated against at least one protected class of students, including students with disabilities, LGBTQ+ students, English language learners, pregnant and parenting students, and more. In a state where the majority of public schools are not fully funded, Illinois' voucher program sent dollars to private schools, funding discrimination and hurting educational equity.

The federal voucher program will do the same, only in this case it will be billions of dollars diverted to private religious schools, instead of millions. Public funds should only be used for public schools that serve 9 out of 10 US children and that are legally obligated to welcome and educate all children that come through their doors in compliance with civil rights laws.

Regarding new Section 25F of the Internal Revenue Code, as added by Section 70411 of Public Law 119-21, 139 Stat. 72, I am writing to express my objection to the use of public tax dollars for private, primarily religious institutions. 

With the ratification of the Bill of Rights of the US Constitution 234 years ago this month, our country was committed to the principle of the separation of church and state: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” 

The new federal voucher program funded via Sec. 25F will funnel billions of tax dollars into religious schools. The program’s structure as a tax-credit scholarship is merely a way to disguise this fundamental violation of the 1st Amendment. 

The fact that dollars in this program may also be directed to the expenses incurred by individual public school families does not mitigate the harm that will be done to our Constitution and our country.

Regarding new Section 25F of the Internal Revenue Code, as added by Section 70411 of Public Law 119-21, 139 Stat. 72, I am writing to express my objection to the use of public tax dollars for private schools. 

Private schools can, and do, discriminate against students and families of nearly every class protected under federal civil rights laws. 

The majority of private schools in the US are religious. Federal non-discrimination laws for the most part do not apply to religious schools, even those accepting federal funding under the National School Lunch Program, the Every Student Succeeds Act and other programs. These programs exempt religious schools from requirements under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the ADA. Religious schools cannot discriminate based on race, but this is due to the prohibition of the IRS which applies to entities with a tax exempt status. 

Moreover, parents who choose to place their child in private school cede most of their child’s rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

Section 25F will divert billions of public dollars into the coffers of private schools—with a hefty percentage skimmed off by the scholarship granting organizations that will be administering the distribution of voucher funds—that do not open their doors to all students in their community. 

With the massive shift of public dollars to the private schooling industry, the future of democratic self-governance in our country is at risk because it crucially depends on a well-educated citizenry.

I am a supporter of public schools {as well as a public school parent/teacher/student/graduate}, and I am writing to voice my strong objection to the diversion of billions of public tax dollars to private schooling under new Section 25F of the Internal Revenue Code, as added by Section 70411 of Public Law 119-21, 139 Stat. 72. 

This month is the 50th anniversary of the passage of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and Congress has still never fulfilled the commitment cover 40% of the costs of the IDEA. In FY 2025 the schools of students with disabilities were short funded by more than $20 billion. 

Meanwhile, Congress, in passing HR1 this summer, has created a federal voucher program that will be a multi-billion tax expenditure to fund private education. With no limit on the total size of the federal voucher program, it will almost certainly dwarf in size the inadequate federal dollars spent on IDEA.

Note that by placing their child in a private school, a parent cedes most of their child’s rights under IDEA. For the majority of families, the ability to use funds granted to them via this new federal voucher program will not come close to covering the services, and the protections, that their child with a disability would have a right to under IDEA if they were to remain in public school. 

A system of well-resourced public schools that serve every child who comes in the door is the only way to ensure that our democracy survives and thrives from one generation to another. A piecemeal system of private institutions funded by tax breaks disguised as charity is no way to educate our children.

Public funds must be for public schools that serve all children. No regulations can fix the fundamental flaw in new Section 25F of the Internal Revenue Code, as added by Section 70411 of Public Law 119-21, 139 Stat. 72, namely that it will result in billions of dollars being diverted from the US Treasury and handed over to unaccountable private schools and scholarship organizations that do not answer to the public. 

The waste, fraud and abuse in existing K-12 voucher programs in states around the country is rampant, particularly those structured as tax credit scholarship programs or education savings accounts, where private organizations serve as middleman through which millions of dollars flow with little oversight or accountabiliy. 

This is the opposite of what good education policy looks like: where tax dollars are spent with careful stewardship to ensure a high-quality educational experience for all children.

As a result of this federal voucher program, our public schools will be starved of the resources they need to educate our children to become life-long learners, problem-solvers, self-confident individuals and, crucially, active participants in our democracy.