Arkansas Tax Credit Scholarship Program’s Positive Fiscal Impact
New polling reveals 61% of Arkansas voters would support the public school grant system
LITTLE ROCK, Ark.—This week, researchers from the University of Arkansas Office for Education Policy and EdChoice released a fiscal impact statement regarding HB1371, The Arkansas Child Academic Opportunity Scholarship and Grant Act. The study revealed the proposed tax-credit scholarship program would generate a positive estimated net benefit of $773,000 to Arkansas public school districts.
The study projected that any reduction in funding to districts would more than offset the reduction in variable costs for those students, leaving a positive return for public schools in the amount of $900 per student in the program.
The study also estimates that state taxpayers would experience net fiscal savings worth $2.3 million, or $2,600 for each scholarship student.
Last week a poll conducted by Cygnal, an award-winning national public opinion and predictive analytics firm, revealed that 65% of Arkansas voters want parents to be able to customize their child’s education or invest in both traditional and other education options. Additionally, 61% of Arkansas voters support tax-credit funded grants for public schools that serve Arkansas’s lowest income populations.
“Overall, Arkansans want parents to be in charge of their children’s education,” said Jacqueline Boggess, director of insights & communications at Cygnal. “Tax credits for donations to scholarships for low- and middle-income students and donations for grants to public schools that serve low- and middle-income students are both popular statewide.”
The full fiscal impact statement is available here. The full poll is available here.
ABOUT EDCHOICE: EdChoice is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to advancing full and unencumbered educational choice as the best pathway to successful lives and a stronger society. EdChoice believes that families, not bureaucrats, are best equipped to make K-12 schooling decisions for their children. The organization works at the state level to educate diverse audiences, train advocates and engage policymakers on the benefits of high-quality school choice programs. EdChoice is the intellectual legacy of Milton and Rose D. Friedman, who founded the organization in 1996 as the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice.
ABOUT THE OFFICE FOR EDUCATION POLICY: The Office for Education Policy (OEP) is a research center within the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas. The OEP exists to serve as a resource to state lawmakers, educators, administrators, and other leaders, providing them with current national, state, and regional research in education to support them in thoughtful decision-making concerning K-12 education in the State of Arkansas.
ABOUT THE REFORM ALLIANCE: The Reform Alliance is a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring every K-12 student in Arkansas has equal access to a world-class education. The Reform Alliance is proud to manage the Succeed Scholarship at no cost to the State of Arkansas. Even small expenses like the cost of mailing checks to schools are paid for by a private foundation grant.
ABOUT CYGNAL: Cygnal is an award-winning national public opinion and predictive analytics firm that pioneered multi-mode polling, peer-to-peer text collection, and Political Emotive Analysis. Cygnal was recently named the #1 most accurate polling and research firm in the country for 2018 by The New York Times. Its team members have worked in 47 states and countries on more than 1,500 corporate, public affairs and political campaigns.
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