Keep public funding in public schools

BACKGROUND

The Trump Administration and allies are using misinformation to entice states to participate in the federal Tax Credit school voucher scheme¹. Now it is up to the Governor of each state to decide whether they will “opt into” or out of the program before January 1, 2027. Governor Youngkin informally opted Virginia into the program, but now it is time for Governor Spanberger to opt Virginia out of the program.

Two of the worst pieces of misinformation about the program are claims that: 1) public schools will benefit², and 2) public school systems will not be economically impacted³. In fact, public schools WILL NOT BENEFIT from the program. Experts warn that the voucher scheme is all risk and no reward⁴ and Jessica Levin⁵, education litigator with the Education Law Center, warned that the benefit to public schools “would be like paying $5 for a benefit of $1”⁵. More misinformation about the program can be found at this link⁶.

Virginians should insist that the Spanberger administration opt Virginia out of this harmful scheme. Please use this one-click method to send emails to Governor Spanberger, Lieutenant Governor Hashmi, Attorney General Jones, and Virginia Secretary of Education Smith, asking them to remove Virginia from participation in the federal voucher scheme.

RESOURCES

1. Congress Passes a National School Voucher Program, NY Times, July 7, 2025.

2. Trump Law Would Also Direct Voucher Money to Public Schools, NY Times, June 9, 2026.

3. Fact Sheet: President Trump Delivers Affordable School Choice Options Through Education Freedom Tax Credit, Treasury.gov.

4. All Risk No Reward for Public Ed: What’s Ahead for the Federal Voucher Program, Public Funds Public Schools, YouTube.

5. What Almost Everybody Gets Wrong About the Federal Voucher Scheme, Education Law Center, YouTube.

6. Federal Voucher Scheme Uses Misleading Information to Lure States into Defunding Public Schools, 4publicEducation.org.