Among the decisions facing Gov. JB Pritzker in coming months is whether to opt into a new federal school voucher program.
The program enables donors to give up to $1,700 to scholarship-granting organizations for K-12 schools and receive an equivalent amount back in federal tax credits. It was passed by Congress and signed into law last year by President Donald Trump as part of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act.
The League of Women Voters of Illinois is strongly opposed to this program because we believe it will hurt public schools. Money from the program is expected to flow primarily to well-off families whose children attend private religious schools. Supporters refer to this money as donations, but the donor taxpayers receive a 100% tax credit. This means that federal taxpayers are footing the entire bill.
When even a few students leave their public schools, it saps those schools of resources because federal and state funding is based on headcount. The initiative undermines the goal of a high-quality school in every neighborhood, which is part of the social fabric of every community.
Private schools can cherry-pick their students, denying admission to students who require more resources and support, like those with disabilities. The public system is left with fixed costs and less funding to serve a higher concentration of special needs and lower-income students.
And research consistently shows that vouchers do not improve student achievement. Long-term studies — including those specific to Illinois — find that students using vouchers often fare substantially worse academically than their public school peers.
Ann Courter, a member the Oak Park and River Forest League board and education issues specialist for the state League, recently discussed the danger of the program on WTTW’s Chicago Tonight. Courter disputed the contention of Austin Berg of the Illinois Policy Institute, that not opting into the program would leave money on the table that would otherwise fund public education in the state.
Regulations for the new program have not yet been issued, so the size of any benefits accessible by public schools are still unknown, but the potential cost to the public education system of opting in would outweigh any possible benefits. The League believes public money should go to fund public schools, not private religious education for wealthy families, when public schools are currently underfunded.
lllinois League President Becky Simon warns that the federal program could have repercussions worse than the former state voucher program that was sunsetted a few years ago. “School vouchers will spend our public dollars in ways that are not transparent, and voucher programs lack the accountability and oversight provided by public school systems,” Simon says.
The state League joined a coalition of 40 organizations in a letter to Pritzker calling on him to opt out. We urge readers to contact the governor’s office or your state legislator to say no to this money that takes us down the wrong path.
Beverly Tuck is co-president of the League of Women Voters of Oak Park-River Forest.
