For decades, anti-public education forces have spent millions of out-of-state dollars promoting their favorite government entitlement: private school vouchers. Despite widespread opposition from Idaho educators and citizens, Gov. Brad Little signed House Bill 93 into law on February 27, 2025, creating Idaho’s most unaccountable and expansive private school voucher program to date.
HB 93 is a voucher in the form of a refundable tax credit that provides up to $5,000 per student (or $7,500 for students with special needs) to be used on private education expenses. Now, $50 million of public money will be diverted from the state general fund to pay for private schooling — money that could have been invested in Idaho’s chronically underfunded public schools.
The fight isn’t over. We must continue to make our voices heard to limit the damage of this program and prevent its expansion.
Why It Matters
- Nearly 50% of Idaho counties lack private schools and 30% of private schools are in one county — Ada.
- Idaho school vouchers favor urban, wealthier students and rural students lose out.
- The state’s voucher program assists a maximum of 10,000 of Idaho’s 300,000 K-12 students and is unusable for many rural students who do not have access to private schools.
- Private schools are not held to the same accountability standards as public schools.
- A recent 2024 poll of Idaho voters showed that 88% support accountability for schools receiving taxpayer money.
- Even Gov. Little admitted, “There’s not enough accountability in it,” before signing HB 93 into law.
- The program will be administered through the Idaho State Tax Commission, with the only “accountability” measure being a survey that participating parents must fill out.
- Voucher schemes have failed in other states and led to huge deficits and cuts to critical services.
- In Arizona, vouchers were projected to cost $70 million and ballooned to $708 million after one year — contributing significantly to a $1.4 billion budget deficit.
- Even before it was implemented, the costs to administer HB 93 rocketed from the original estimate of $125,000 to $675,000.
- Studies show that vouchers are disproportionately used by wealthy families that do not need financial help.
- HB 93 provides tax credits to families earning up to 300% of the federal poverty level in its first year – roughly $93,600 for a family of four. Idaho’s median income is more than $91,000.
- In states with voucher programs, 65-90% of students who receive vouchers are not public school students and could already afford private school tuition.
Why We Care
What could your local school be with proper funding? Idaho’s educators and schools move mountains to support students with the inadequate funding they receive from the state. But resourcefulness and responsibility can only do so much.
Instead of creating a separate system for the wealthy that siphons funds from public schools, we should demand our lawmakers invest in the system we have — a system that is open to every Idaho child, no exceptions.
We can do better, Idaho.
By The Numbers
Frequently Asked Questions
Contact Your Legislator
