Lifting cap on Oklahoma's School Choice Tax Credit could have high cost

Yahoo

27-03-2025

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — The conversation about no cap on Oklahoma's School Choice Tax Credit could come at a cost after another state implemented a similar measure.
Several bills related to the Parental Choice Tax Credit program we discussed this legislative session. However, lawmakers voiced concern that there are close to none that serve to provide accountability or oversight.
The program was billed, in large part, as a way to help low-income families get their kids the best education possible, but new state data showed a major share of its funds went to the state's wealthiest families that participated.
The data from the Oklahoma Tax Commission showed Oklahoma paid out $91.7 million to families taking part in the Parental Choice Tax Credit system.
The cap is a tiered system; the credits are capped at $200 million for the current school year and will be $250 million for 2026.
Governor Kevin Stitt has voiced his support to remove the cap altogether. Several lawmakers voiced concern about removing the cap as there have been examples of that causing concern.
Arizona has a school-choice program where they removed the cap and it caused problems according to the latest data.
A non-partisan think-tank group, the Grand Canyon Institute (GCI), conducted research regarding their program.
A report released by GCI over the summer last year looked at the net cost of Arizona's school choice program. The report aimed to find the costs or savings the state was taking on because of the program.
Research director Dave Wells said the school choice program in Arizona contributed to the budget deficit, adding a whole new cost to the state.
Governor Stitt calls to extend the cap on Parental Choice Tax Credit
'We're taking a whole bunch of children who were never going to be in a public district or charter school and now we're subsidizing them,' Wells explained. 'What these programs do is they primarily seem to elevate the needs of higher-income parents over the needs of lower-income parents.'
Representative Melissa Provenzano (D-Tulsa) is the author of a bill that is expected to be voted on come Friday that is one of the only ones that has some accountability on the tax credit program.
Her bill HB 1396 would essentially not require parents to sign up for the program if they are enrolling in a private school.
Before it came to the floor, it did have a restriction where schools couldn't raise their tuition just because of the program. That was taken out in committee.
'Just like in Arizona, if we take the cap off of how much we're willing to spend each year, we're going to put ourselves in a financial crisis. And so I'm very concerned about that,' said Rep. Provenzano.
The money from the Oklahoma program was divided among families based on their income. A $27.1 million portion, about 30%, went to families making below $75,000 a year.
According to census data, the average household income from last year totaled just over $63,000.
A nearly equal amount, $26.3 million, went to families making between $75,000 and $150,000.
Governor Stitt was asked about removing the cap and was presented the issues Arizona has seen, but he didn't answer the concerns.
He did comment later during his Wednesday presser on a push towards slightly more privatized education programs.
'If we can do what I think we're able to do on education with our free market approach, with our, you know, more charter schools, more Christian schools, more Catholic schools, more options for parents,' said Gov. Stitt.
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