Through the (“Tax Expenditure”) Looking Glass

It’s no secret that the California Teachers Association has no love for tax credit legislation. To illustrate the point, one need look no farther than AB 337, a bill authored by California Assemblymember Reginald Jones-Sawyer in 2015, that proposed a modest tax credit (to a maximum benefit of $250) for out-of-pocket expenses incurred…

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Who’s Afraid of Federal Education Tax Credits?

In a previous column titled, “Repeat as Necessary,” it was observed that opponents of education tax credit legislation have made a concerted effort to erase any meaningful distinction between tax credits and vouchers by making frequent reference to “tax credit vouchers,” and creating…

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Repeat as Necessary

Opponents of school choice appear committed to the application of the maxim, he who defines the terms wins the argument. Consider a recent letter to the Comptroller General of the United States, jointly signed by Senators Patty Murray (D. -WA), Sheldon Whitehouse (D. -RI), and Ron Wyden (D. -OR), in which the…

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Lessons From Chicago

As these words are being penned, Chicago’s public school system is teetering on the verge of insolvency. Facing a current budget deficit approaching a half billion dollars, the system once headed by former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has become something of a political football being kicked around by the city’s Democratic mayor,…

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Are Jewish Views of Education Tax Credits Changing?

Earlier this month, more than seventy rabbis, Jewish organizational executives and academics described as “a highly diverse group of thought leaders from all around the United States,” lent their names to a document billed as a “Statement on Jewish Vitality,” The statement commences with a somber acknowledgement:

“American Jewry now stands at a…

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