Student Funding

Use of Funds 

ESA funds for qualifying expenses include tuition and fees at a qualified school; tutoring services provided by an individual or a tutoring facility, but may not be provided by an ESA student’s immediate family; services contracted for and provided by a public school district to include individual classes and extracurricular activities and programs; textbooks, curriculum, and other instructional or supplemental materials required for instruction required by a curriculum or education service provider; computer hardware or other technological devices that are primarily used to help meet an ESA student’s educational needs; educational software and applications; school uniforms; fees for nationally standardized assessments, advanced placement exams, and exams for college or university admission and tuition and fees for preparatory courses for the exams; tuition and fees for summer education programs and specialized after school education programs, but not including after school childcare programs; tuition, fees, instructional materials and examination fees at a career or technical school; educational services and therapies including, but not limited to, occupational, behavioral, physical, speech-language and audiology therapies; tuition and fees at an institution of higher education; fees for transportation paid to a fee-for-service transportation provider for the student to travel to and from an education service provider; tuition and fees for nongovernmental online learning programs; and, any other educational expense approved by the state superintendent.

Funding Amount and Source

ESA students will receive an annual maximum of $7,000, disbursed quarterly, for eligible educational expenses. There is an appropriation of $30 million for the program, and it is the legislature’s intent that the appropriation be included in the state department of education biennial budget. The state superintendent may withhold up to 5% of this amount to cover the program’s administrative costs. If 5% of the appropriation is withheld, then 4,071 students will be able to participate, or about 4% of Wyoming’s pre-K–12 student population. There is a provision in the law that allows the superintendent to direct gifts and grants received for this program to cover its administrative costs.

 (Last updated March 4, 2025)  

Student Eligibility

Wyoming’s ESA program is open to all kindergarten through 12th grade students. It is also open to pre-kindergarten students whose families have a total household income at or below 250% of the federal poverty guidelines. A student cannot participate if they have graduated high school or received an equivalency certificate.

(Last updated March 4, 2025)  

EdChoice Expert Feedback

A program’s universality is measured on three points: Student eligibility, funding amount and source, and use of funds. Eligibility and funding amount and source have been explained above. Here, we explain how funds for this program may be used. ESA funds for qualifying expenses include tuition and fees at a qualified school; tutoring services provided by an individual or a tutoring facility, but cannot be provided by an ESA student’s immediate family; services provided for and provided by a public school district, to include individual classes and extracurricular activities and programs; textbooks, curriculum and other instructional or supplemental materials required for instruction required by a curriculum or education service provider; computer hardware or other technological devices that are primarily used to help meet an ESA student’s educational needs; educational software and applications; school uniforms; fees for standardized assessments, advanced placement exams, and exams for university admission and related prep courses; tuition and fees for summer education programs and specialized after school education programs; tuition, fees, instructional materials and exam fees at career or technical schools; educational services or therapies including occupational, behavioral, physical, speech-language and audiology therapies; tuition and fees at institutions of higher education; fees for transportation; and other educational expenses approved by the state superintendent. ESA students are not required to be enrolled, full-time or part-time in a nonpublic school. (Last Updated - May 21, 2024)

Rules and Regulations

Program Guidelines

• Income Limit: None for K-12, 250% FPL for pre-K
• Prior Year Public School Requirement: None
• Enrollment Cap: Limited by $30M Appropriation to 4,071 Total Participants
• Account Cap: $7,000
• Testing Mandates: State or nationally-norm referenced
• Budget Cap: $30 million

Participant and Family Guidelines

• Click Here for the Program Administrator’s Parent Handbook
• Education Requirements:
• Participating students in K⁠–⁠12 receive instruction in, at minimum, reading, writing, mathematics, civics, including studies of the US and Wyoming constitutions, history, literature and science
• Participating students must take the statewide assessment or a nationally normed achievement exam.
• Parent Supplemented Funds/Scholarships: Allowed
• Disbursement Payment/Frequency: Quarterly
• Reimbursement: Allowed
• Parents of eligible students and ESA recipients are permitted to intervene in any lawsuit for the purposes of defending the ESA program’s constitutionality.
• Miscellaneous:
  • At least 2% of ESA are subject to annual audit, state will contract for it
  • Annually provide the student’s resident public school district notice of intent to participate in the ESA program
  • Certification that the ESA student is not enrolled in a public school district
• Priority: The Steamboat Legacy Scholarship Act creates a new priority system in the event that more applications are received than there are ESAs that can be awarded. Priority will be first-come, first-serve, subject to the following students:
  • An eligible student who received funds under an ESA in the preceding school year;
  • A sibling of an eligible student who either receives ESA funds at the time that the sibling is applying for their own ESA, or who received an ESA in the school year preceding the school year for which the sibling is applying for an ESA.

Education Provider Guidelines

• Accreditation/Approval: Certified by state superintendent of public instruction, who at minimum determines that ESA students in K⁠–⁠12 will receive instruction in, at minimum, reading, writing, mathematics, civics, history, literature and science
• Employment Standards: See “accreditation/approval” above
• Nondiscrimination: Federal
• Calendar/Curriculum/Attendance: Ensure instruction in reading, writing, mathematics, civics, including studies of the US and Wyoming constitutions, history, literature, and science
• Financial: May be required to purchase a surety bond if receiving more than $150,000 in ESA funds
• Miscellaneous: Agree not to refund, rebate or share ESA funds with parents or ESA students, except to the ESA accounts in accordance with procedures established by the superintendent

(Last updated March 4, 2025)  

Governing Statutes

W.S. 21-2-901 through W.S. 21-2-909; W.S. 21-4-102; W.S. 21-4-301 and W.S. 21-13-310 

(Last updated March 4, 2025)  

Legal History

This program has not been challenged in court.

(Last updated March 4, 2025)