New York – Three major Jewish organizations joined together Monday to push for the passage of New York’s Parental Choice in Education Act. Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s proposed legislation would offer tax credits to families sending children to private school and those contributing to scholarship funds for these schools.
Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
In a press conference held outside the New York City Office of the Governor of the State of New York, representatives from the Orthodox Union, UJA-Federation of New York and Agudath Israel presented a united front urging the state legislature to pass the bill, which would provide $150 million in education tax credits and scholarships annually. The three groups have been engaged in lobbying efforts in Albany and community advocacy in support of the measure, which would provide incentives for those who contribute to scholarship organizations for private school students and tuition tax credits for private school students whose families meet certain criteria.
Tax credits of up to 75 percent would be available for both individuals and businesses that donate to nonprofit scholarship organizations for students at non-public schools. This would equate to, at most, $50 million a year. Additionally, tax credits of up to $500 per student per year would be offered to non-public school families earning less than $60,000 a year.
During Monday’s press conference, Allen Fagin, executive vice president of the Orthodox Union; Eric S. Goldstein, CEO of UJA-Federation of New York; and Rabbi David Zwiebel, executive vice president of Agudath Israel of America, highlighted the impact the bill would have on New York’s Jewish day schools and yeshivas.
All three applauded the governor for his support for his support of school choice, with Goldstein calling on the legislature to “pass this critical measure into law” and make “faith-based education affordable.”
That the three organizations are standing as one “shows how important this legislation is to us,” said Rabbi Zwiebel. “It brings real choice into the concept of parental options for education.”
Fagin said the legislation is about “fairness and civil rights.” Parents who choose to send their children to private schools “are relieving the state of an enormous financial burden. It costs the state approximately $20,000 per child in public school,” he said. “We are relieving the state of billions of dollars in costs.”
The state also benefits from having “well-educated children. This creates jobs and people who become taxpayers,” Fagin said.
Problem is we will never see anything of it, the schools will just hire tuition to get the $500 and make everyone forget about the scholorship money they receive on your behalf.
Which shcool gives the full credit ,or even 50%, of headstart or early learn credit??? Does anyone know that it’s worth about 10k?
Does anyone know that the most lunch program are worth about 2k per child?
Does anyone know that transportation per child (after ghrabbing it away from varcity) is about 2k per child?
They are already only talking about the $500 (which they will take away from you) and not highliting the scholorship program.
Schools are floating in money, buying up properties all over, but parents cannot even afford basics and the schools wont give them even a fraction of what;s’ thiers.
is this the same bill that all those people attacked that black legislator about last week? like she said this bill ignores middle class so I dont see what is great about it, what we need to do is send ALL our kids to public schools and breakdown the system.
NICE!
Fagin said that “…the state also benefits from having well-educated children…this creates jobs and people who become taxpayers.”
This is true for some yeshivos, and very much untrue for others. As YAFFED and other organizations have been pointing out, there are a fair number of yeshivos in New York that don’t provide anything resembling a reasonable education for children, and certainly don’t create jobs (other than rebbes and administrators in those same schools) nor do they create taxpayers.
I could be in favor of this bill if it came along with strictly enforced educational requirements for any school benefitting from its provisions. If not, this should be scrapped.
Who can survive on 60k a year in NY. Again the only ones benefiting from this will be the cheaters and the rest will be left out. I can see the tuition rates rising thanks to this and honest people will only suffer.
Its becoming impossible to survive in the “Heimish” communities if try to be honest.