Hochul Opts New York Into Trump’s Divisive School Choice Program

New York Governor Kathy Hochul is opting her state into the Trump administration’s controversial school choice program, according to a statement released Friday.

The Education Freedom Tax Credit allows taxpayers to direct up to $1,700 of their annual federal tax bill to nonprofits that will grant students scholarships to pay for expenses like private school tuition, tutoring or school supplies. The program is estimated to generate almost $26 billion annually by 2030, according to the US Treasury Department.

The politics around school choice programs, where public dollars fund private education, are divisive. Republicans have been generally supportive of such policies, while Democrats and labor unions that traditionally back them usually view them as harmful to already-struggling public schools.

Red states dominate the list of 30 jurisdictions that have opted in as of Sept 14. In Kansas and Kentucky, Republican-controlled legislatures overrode their Democratic governors’ vetoes to join.

While most blue state leaders have held off or refused to participate, Colorado Governor Jared Polis and Hochul are among the few exceptions. Hochul declared her support for the program in May, but didn’t opt in until the US Treasury Department released guidance earlier this month explaining how the program will operate.

“We believe this program has the potential to bring millions of additional dollars to New York students and families without taking a single dollar from public schools or our state or local budgets,” said Hochul in the statement. “I’m not going to leave money on the table when it could help our kids.”

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The governor’s decision puts her at odds with multiple state officials.

Senate majority leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins has said she opposes the decision, as does Senator John Liu, who chairs the Committee on NYC Education. Both worry that the program would hurt the state’s public school systems. So does L. Joy Williams, president of the NAACP New York State Conference.

“New York can create a public school scholarship option, but it can’t require donors to fund it,” said Williams, who has worked on Democratic campaigns. “Students in our highest need public school districts already experience the consequences of unequal private giving.”

Hochul said she has been “directly engaging with business leaders, who have committed to use this program to support public school students and their academic needs.”

Some nonprofits in the state are preparing for the program, which goes into effect in January.

Robin Hood Foundation, an anti-poverty charity, plans to donate at least $500,000 before the end of the year to support nonprofits that will grant scholarships for public school students, according to Jason Cone, the organization’s chief public policy officer.

ACE Scholarships, a Colorado-based nonprofit that’s been awarding scholarships for private schools since 2000, has built out its operations so it can administer the federal program in every state. It invested $12 million in a technology platform and plans to spend $25 million on marketing campaigns touting the new federal tax credit.