Pennsylvania’s school choice programs have allowed thousands of low—and middle-income families to get their children out of the state’s flagging public schools. Yet Democrats are pushing a platform that opposes school choice programs like the one in Pennsylvania.
According to a September report from the Commonwealth Foundation, over 77,000 K-12 scholarships have been awarded under the state’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program and the Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC). Pennsylvania Democrats attempted to strip additional funding for the initiatives, and the party’s national platform declares that school choice programs are “schemes.”
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The scholarships are in such high demand that the state had to use “arbitrary program caps,” according to the report, denying 63,000 student applications. Over 100,000 applications were submitted in the 2021-2022 school year.
Pennsylvania’s EITC was enacted in 2001, while the OSTC was enacted in 2012. The Associated Press reported that Democrats in Pennsylvania criticized the OSTC in 2023, claiming that it is “discriminatory” by picking and choosing the recipients of the scholarships.
“This landmark study reveals how important these scholarships are for Pennsylvania’s kids,” Rachel Langan, senior education policy analyst at the Commonwealth Foundation and the report’s author, said in a press release. “Tax credit scholarships provide thousands of low-income students access to high-quality schools of their choice. These scholarships are also improving academic outcomes. According to the study, tax credit scholarship beneficiaries routinely outperform their peers, all while graduating at higher rates than their public school counterparts.”
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The report states that there are students in every county in Pennsylvania attending school on EITC or OSTC scholarships, and those of them routinely outperform their public school peers. As of 2023, Pennsylvania schools were underfunded by over $6 billion, with the biggest shortfalls being in the state’s poorest districts, according to the Public Interest Law Center.
Most families receiving scholarship programs are below the median income level of $75,335, with the average income being between $41,463 and $73,100 annually.
Democrats attempted to cut funding for the EITC and OSTC programs in late 2023 as part of the state’s budget bill, according to a press release from the Pennsylvania House GOP. However, according to a press release from the Commonwealth Foundation, the state legislature passed a $150,000,000 increase for the programs, which Gov. Josh Shapiro signed in December 2023.
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“The goal of legislation like this … is to push vulnerable students and families into private and religious schools where they check their constitutional rights at the door,” Democratic Sen. Lindsey Williams said on the Senate floor, according to Chalkbeat Philadelphia.
According to the report, students who qualified received an average of $2,780 in scholarships, and the private schools that serve students have tuition under $10,000 per year. The projected number of low—to middle-income students who will benefit from the EITC scholarships in 2024 is over 100,000.
“This report demonstrates high demand and significant results,” Nathan Benefield, senior vice president for the Commonwealth Foundation, said in the press release. “If the past is any indication, demand for tax credit scholarships will continue to rise, showing the remarkable success of the program and the desire of parents to find the best educational option for their children.”
The report states that 141,452 K-12 student scholarship applications were submitted for the 2021-2022 school year, almost 3,000 more than the previous year. This amount was the highest on record.
Shapiro’s office did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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First published by the Daily Caller News Foundation.