One Voice for Public Policy - Parental Choice in Education: A Commonsense Idea Whose Time Has Come
It’s 2025, and at long last – after 30 years of hard work and struggle – we appear to have reached a tipping point in the effort to once again acknowledge parents as the primary authority in the educational lives of their children. There have been many important milestones along the way – many judicial, legislative and public opinion victories - that have led to this new and very positive circumstance. But none of these carries the promise of the recently passed Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA). It is, in fact, the first truly national school choice program, and thus it holds the potential to be truly revolutionary in its impact.
Allow me to give you a brief overview of the program. At its core, the ECCA introduces a new permanent provision into the federal tax code which, beginning in January 2027, will allow taxpayers to contribute money to non-profit organizations who, in turn, will use that money to grant scholarships to parents who request them. These scholarships will give parents the financial ability to direct their child’s education either by choosing a non-government (non-public) school for their child or by accessing a wide array of auxiliary educational services (tutoring, music lessons, transportation, books, supplies, internet access, etc.) for all students including those who continue within the governmental (public) system. In either case, these funds will give parents the financial ability to control their child’s education and will send a clear signal that they are the ones to whom the whole educational enterprise is ultimately accountable.
So, how will it work? The ECCA is essentially a tax-credit system in which the government offers a powerful incentive for taxpayers to financially support the empowerment of parents. More specifically, it offers taxpayers a dollar-for-dollar reimbursement (tax credit) for money they contribute to scholarship-granting organizations (SGOs). Each taxpayer may annually contribute and receive tax credits of up to $1700 per year ($3400 per couple). All children in the State will be eligible to receive scholarship benefits unless their family’s household income exceeds 300% of the area median household income. In Minnesota, this means any child from a household making up to about $240,000 per year will qualify. The dollar amount of each scholarship awarded will be determined by each participating SGO. An SGO must offer its benefits to students attending more than one school, and taxpayer contributions may not be designated for any particular individual students. Other specific rules are in the process of being written.
There is, however, one potential complication contained within the ECCA to be aware of. It stipulates that each state’s governor (or other governmental entity) must affirmatively opt-in to the program in order for SGOs to be established within that state and in order for students of that state to be able to receive benefits; although all taxpayers in all states may make contributions to SGOs in other participating states. In Minnesota, this means that Governor Walz must officially opt-in to the program if Minnesota children are to be eligible to receive these important scholarships. As of this date, he has not indicated whether he intends to do so.
In summary, the ECCA holds great potential to significantly benefit all Minnesota families, whether their children attend public, charter, private, or religious schools. By financially empowering parents to pursue the kind of education they consider best for their children, including a religiously grounded education, the ECCA is identifying parents as the ultimate authority in the educational lives of their children – a concept entirely consistent with our Lutheran understanding of the Fourth Commandment. Indeed, this parental re-empowerment is intended to serve as a key element in returning our educational system to one which truly has the good of the children – not the adults of the system -- as its primary goal.
So, how do we insure that this opportunity becomes a reality here in Minnesota? Well, at this point, it all hinges on the willingness of Governor Walz to opt Minnesota into the ECCA system. Therefore, we need to take every opportunity, and utilize every means, to remind the Governor that whatever personal reservations he may harbor toward non-public schools and their students*, it is incumbent on him to support the ECCA program as it will benefit all children and all parents of Minnesota, regardless of what type of school the child attends - public, private or religious. We need to remind him that as a federal program, it will not cost the State of Minnesota anything to participate and will “take no money away” from public education. We need to remind him that with increased parental freedom to choose will come increased competition for students, giving public schools greater incentive to “up their game” by providing a more effective education than in the past, thus benefitting all students enrolled in public schools. This is particularly important in light of the recent NAEP scores indicating that fewer than 50% of students in our Minnesota public schools are now proficient in reading and math.
As Christians committed to serving not only the eternal but also the temporal needs of our neighbor, I urge you to be active in supporting the ECCA as it offers all our children not only access to a better educational experience and a brighter academic future, but also, and more importantly, access to an education grounded in God’s Word and supportive of a more mature life in Christ.
Please contact Governor Walz and urge him to opt-in to the new Educational Choice for Children Program. He can be reached via email on his internet contact page or by phone at 1-800-657-3717.
In Christ,
Rev. Fredric Hinz
Public Policy Advocate, Minnesota Districts, LCMS
fred.hinz@mnsdistrict.org
507-317-9634
Rev. Scot Missling
Public Policy Advocate, Minnesota Districts, LCMS
pastorstpaullcms@gmail.com
651-776-4737
* During the 2025 legislative session, Governor Walz endeavored to deprive all non-public students of all State educational benefits amounting to about $1,000 per student per year. Fortunately, he was ultimately unsuccessful in doing so.