Prairie State Wire

Gov. J.B. Pritzker appears willing to risk the educational opportunities available to Illinois' underprivileged youth in exchange of millions in extra tax revenue, at the dismay of many critics.

According to a February editorial in The Chicago Tribune, Pritzker described the Opportunity Scholarship Program, which allows private individuals and corporations to fund tuition for low- and middle-income students and claim 75% of their donation as a tax credit up to $1 million, as a "corporate tax loophole."

Others describe it as a life-changing program that helps students stuck in low-performance public schools elevate their educational opportunities by incentivizing private donations, but Pritzker can't seem to get on board; he reportedly proposed slashing the tax credit down to 40%, which many criticize and say will lessen the program's appeal for donors. 

Wirepoints' Ted Dabrowski said that many minority legislators understand how much their constituents appreciate the freedom of school choice, a liberty made possible to lower-income families by the Opportunity Scholarship Program.

"[Constituents] like that they've gotten this scholarship through the Tax Credit Scholarship Program and have gotten out of the public schools," Dabrowski explained. "[...] The good news is there's a good group of legislators who understand this, minority legislators."

Former Gov. Bruce Rauner introduced the program, and it has brought more than 20,000 students out of low-performing public schools to private education. The scholarships are funded by the Invest in Kids Scholarship Tax Credit Program, and are awarded to families with an annual income less than 300% of the poverty level. 

The policy expert said that there's a lot of politics involved in the matter which muddies the predictability of the outcome. Pritzker alleges that slashing the tax credit from 75 cents on the dollar to 40 cents would generate an extra $14 million in revenue for the state, but it would at the expense of Illinois minority families—Illinois Policy reported that almost half of the participating students are either Hispanic or Black. 

"The power of these kids to be able to accept a scholarship and get out of some of the [Chicago Public Schools] that are performing so poorly is huge," Dabrowski said.