Children First America Lauds Presidential Education Tax Credit Proposal

2/4/2002

From: John E. Hock of Children First America, 512-345-1083

WASHINGTON, Feb. 4 -- Children First America (CFA), a national school-choice clearinghouse, applauds President Bush's fiscal year 2003 budget, which includes a proposal to grant tax credits for parents seeking greater educational freedom for their children trapped in failing public schools and improved resources for charter schools.

CFA President and CEO Fritz Steiger commented, "School choice is common for well-to-do families with the ability to choose suburban public or private schools. Low-income families are not nearly so fortunate. Parents around the country, especially low-income parents whose children are trapped in failing and unsafe schools, will welcome the chance to choose the best school to meet the needs of their child - whether it's a public, private or a charter school. The President's tax credit proposal will go a long way towards creating an equal opportunity for disadvantaged families."

The budget, which is estimated to provide $3.5 billion to improve educational options for families, will give assistance to the approximately 4.5 million students presently stuck in schools that fail to meet current state standards.

"To have a sitting president make a proposal like this is a great validation of the work we've been doing for more than 10 years," Steiger said. "Thousands of students have benefited from the more than 100 school-choice programs created by ourselves and other organizations. However, we've always been acutely aware of the fact that these efforts are miniscule compared to the magnitude of the problem. Private support can only do so much."

The budget calls for parents to receive a tax credit of up to $2,500 a year to reimburse educational expenses for their children in failing public schools, which translates to hundreds of thousands of students receiving benefits annually. Expenses covered under the proposal include tuition for private schooling, supplies used for home schooling, or transportation to private or better public schools.

Another important element of the President's budget proposal is an allocation of $50 million toward research projects that develop, implement and evaluate approaches to providing parents with expanded school options, including both private and public schools.

Additionally, the President's 2003 budget proposes increased spending for charter school programs, including $200 million to spur growth in the number of charter schools throughout the nation, and $100 million for program to make it easier for charter schools to receive money to improve or acquire facilities.

Children First America is the nation's leading school-choice organization involved in establishing privately-funded voucher programs and parent awareness groups. CFA's mission is to promote parental choice in education through private tuition grants and tax-funded options, giving all families the power to choose the K-12 school that best fulfills the hopes and dreams they have for their children.