Monday, January 13, 2020

Private School Tax Credits Save the State of Arizona Millions of Dollars


IBE is a proud member of ASTOA-Arizona School Tuition Organization Association. ASTOA not only advocates for STOs, private schools and all things related to tax credits and school choice, they are also instrumental in keeping their member STOs up-to-date on tax credit law.  In order to help Arizonans understand the benefits of tax credits, ASTOA recently published a white paper, or informational report.  This report highlights how tax credits give lower income families the opportunities offered by school choice while saving the state of Arizona millions of educational dollars. To help our community continue to advocate for school choice options, we have included this link. 

The critical points reflect that STOs and tax credits:
  • Allow tens of thousands of students to attend a private school
  • Provide a savings to the state of Arizona at least $34.6 million, and potentially upwards of $285 million per year, compared to the cost of educating those students in a public school
  • Award 60%-70% of scholarships to low-income families
  • Are the primary reason that approximately two-thirds of students in private schools are able to attend
  • Achieve a budget-positive result for the State of Arizona
  • Are a win-win for Arizona children


Summary findings based on analysis performed by Deborah Sheasby with facts obtained from reports from the Arizona Department of Education, Joint Legislative Budget Committee, and Arizona Department of Revenue.

This report has been released to legislators, staff, policymakers and others who are elected to make a difference in Arizona children’s lives.