Hardly anyone is talking about it, but Congress has just passed one of the most consequential education reforms in history.
Tucked into the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is a provision that could transform how families access education, reshape the politics of schooling, and finally give parents the power to direct their children’s learning. The legislation establishes a first-of-its-kind federal tax credit scholarship program, open to all types of educational settings. Beginning in 2027, people will be able to claim a dollar-for-dollar federal tax credit, up to $1,700 annually, for donations to educational nonprofit groups that fund K–12 scholarships for low- and middle-income students. The scholarships are designed to be flexible, meeting the wide-ranging needs of modern families. Parents can use them for tuition, tutoring, books, uniforms, transportation, educational technology, or special-needs services. And because they are classified as tax-free for recipients, the scholarships will provide real, immediate support rather than burdensome paperwork.
It is not a small pilot program or a symbolic gesture but a structural shift. Federal law now recognizes that parents, not bureaucrats, should hold the reins of their children’s education. Remarkably, this sweeping change has been barely discussed in the media, as if the country doesn’t realize a quiet revolution has already begun.
The path to passage has been a long one. For nearly a decade, the American Federation for Children, the nation’s leading school choice advocacy group, has been pushing for such a measure. Tommy Schultz, AFC’s CEO, reflected on the journey: “AFC played the lead role in the advocacy efforts of the federal tax credit scholarship for the last 8 years. Once President-elect Donald J. Trump selected AFC’s board chair, Betsy DeVos, to be Secretary of Education in 2017, the dream of advancing a federal school choice bill was finally possible. AFC deployed millions each year to advance the legislative efforts with lawmakers and staff, and they managed the key partnerships and coalition supporters across nonprofits, schools, faith leaders, and scholarship organizations.”
Schultz went on, “AFC also won hundreds of policy and elections victories at the state level, which gave massive political credibility with federal lawmakers in the post-COVID era. They intend to use all of their state-level implementation expertise to make the federal rollout as successful as possible: maximizing donations and maximizing the number of lower-income families accessing the scholarships.”
In other words, this was not a lightning strike. It was the product of years of groundwork, coalition-building, and patient persistence. The bill’s champions, Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Tim Scott (R-SC), as well as DeVos explained the more profound philosophy behind it in a recent Fox News op-ed: “Quality education is foundational to success; it is the key to unlocking the American dream, and as Tim Scott rightly says, the closest thing to magic in America. For too long, however, parents have been forced to accept a one-size-fits-all approach to education that often does not work, and which has failed millions of students across decades. Those failures disproportionately affect low-income and minority families, whose children are frequently trapped in failing schools with no alternatives.”
That sentiment captures the bill’s significance: This isn’t about dismantling public education but about finally acknowledging that children are not all the same and that families should be empowered to make the best possible choices for their children.
If the legislation had been proposed in 2010, it might have died in committee. But COVID-19 changed everything. School closures lasted for months, sometimes even years, while other nations reopened more quickly. Remote “learning” left many children staring blankly at screens, disengaged and falling behind. Parents suddenly had a front-row seat to what their children were — or weren’t — being taught. What they saw was often alarming: thin academics, politicized lessons, and wasted time.
By 2022, national test scores told the story plainly. Reading and math achievement had fallen to record-low levels. In some states, the majority of students are unable to perform at grade level. Meanwhile, school violence, bullying, and chronic absenteeism surged, leaving families desperate for alternatives. In Virginia, parents’ frustration boiled over politically. Glenn Youngkin made schools the centerpiece of his 2021 gubernatorial campaign, and in a purple state, he won. His victory was a clear warning shot to both parties: Parents matter, and education can swing elections. The school choice component of the “big, beautiful bill” is a direct outgrowth of that political awakening.
But passing the law is only the beginning. For families to benefit, governors must decide whether to opt their states into the program. That has already become a flashpoint. Every single Democrat in Congress voted against the bill, and some blue-state governors are signaling resistance. Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD) has yet to commit. His spokesman, Carter Elliott, issued a cautious statement: “The Governor is committed to ensuring that every student in Maryland has the best education possible. The Trump Administration’s approach on this issue has never been tried before. We are evaluating all of the options to ensure Maryland students have the best opportunities to succeed.”
In other words: Maybe, maybe not.
Nathan J. Diament, executive director of the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center, called such hesitation short-sighted: “The enactment of this federal school choice program is nothing short of historic. It can unleash many millions of dollars to be directed by parents, as opposed to bureaucracies, to support their children’s education. But to have this impact, one crucial element will be for all Governors to have their states opt-in to the program, as the legislation requires. There is some skepticism about ‘blue state’ governors doing this, because the teachers unions are against it. But that would be bad policy and bad politics for those governors.”
Diament is right: Governors who refuse to opt in will not stop the program. They will simply deprive their own residents while watching money flow to other states. For Democrats, opposition to school choice is increasingly risky. Teachers unions remain a robust base of support, but parents are becoming an even more powerful constituency. Parents don’t forget what happened to their children during the pandemic. They don’t ignore crime in their schools, low test scores, or graduates who are unprepared for adult life. Republicans, meanwhile, now have the political advantage of being the party that delivered school choice on a national scale. Once families begin using the scholarships and parents see for themselves that their donations or tax credits translate into real options, the politics will shift even further. What’s coming is not just a policy change but a cultural one. Parents who once felt trapped will discover freedom. Families who never thought private education could be within reach will suddenly have options. Communities that struggled to provide enrichment will be able to fund tutoring and after-school programs. And when that happens, it will be challenging for opponents of the program to argue that parents should be stripped of those opportunities.
Beneath the surface, this school choice legislation represents one of the most significant shifts in education in decades. It empowers parents. It prioritizes children. It bypasses bureaucracy. It offers hope at a time when faith in public education is at an all-time low.
MOTHERHOOD SHOULD MAKE MORE WOMEN REPUBLICANS
School choice is no longer a state-by-state experiment. It is national policy. And as more people learn what has quietly passed, the political landscape will tilt dramatically. For Republicans, the political dividends may be enormous. For Democrats, the decision to stand with unions over parents may prove disastrous.
But most importantly, for millions of families, the future just got brighter. School choice is coming nationwide. The only question now is whether governors will allow their residents to take part in what may prove to be the most “beautiful” reform in modern education.