Homeschool parents say effort to expand tax credit scholarships is 'dangerous' for them

The Missouri State Capitol building on Thursday, Jan. 4, 2024.

Two proposals aimed at making it easier for Missouri parents to pay for private schooling or teach their children at home received unexpected pushback during a legislative committee hearing Monday.

Homeschooling parents and advocates asked to be left out.

There was still ample support for House Bill 2104 by state Rep. Phil Christofanelli, a Republican from St. Charles County, and House Bill 1738 by state Rep. Doug Richey, a Republican from Clay County, during a meeting of the House Special Committee on Education Reform.

Both proposals seek to expand access to the still relatively new Missouri Empower Scholarship Accounts Program, which operates similarly to an education savings account.

In short, individuals receive tax credits for donating to specific nonprofits — called educational assistance organizations or EAOs — and then administer scholarships to eligible students enrolled in nonpublic schooling options.

Danielle Dent-Breen, president of Homeschool Connection in Kansas City, which has 1,200 families, said Missouri is not the first state to embrace school choice in an effort to “get money into homeschoolers’ pockets” but noted the funding comes with strings.

“We’re here today to say that the school choice agenda that is currently being considered in our state is misguided at best,” said Dent-Breen, in the hearing. “And it is actually dangerous, at worst, when it comes to homeschoolers.”

She said choice-related funding is often introduced as “voluntary” but inevitably, the push for everyone to follow the same rules results in unwanted oversight.

Dent-Breen said the Missouri Empower Scholarship Accounts Program, often referred to as MO Scholars, has been able to sidestep the extra regulations for participants to this point because it was not funded directly by tax dollars.

She said the program has tried to “intentionally circumvent the constitutional prohibitions against Missouri money going to private organizations, religious organizations.”

Christofanelli, who was instrumental in creating the program, called it a “great step forward for choice” in Missouri.

“It was the first choice bill, in fact, passed in over 20 years in our state, putting us on the map with other states that have been providing more opportunity for kids and parents to direct where they would receive their education,” he told the committee.

In 2021, state Rep. Phil Christofanelli, R-St. Peters, spoke during a debate about his scholarship accounts bill in the Missouri House.

“However, there were a number of restrictions placed in the legislation that were the product of political compromise and not … inspired by what I believed was the best public policy.”

Christofanelli said the bills that he and Richey proposed aimed to get closer to the original intent of the program.

“Ultimately, I think where we ant to go is where many other states have gone in providing a universal school choice option for every Missouri student that wants to avail themselves,” he said.

In the new bill, Christofanelli seeks to increase the amount of tax credits available — in exchange for donations to an EAO — from $50 million to $75 million annually.

Currently, eligibility is restricted to students with lower income levels who live in cities or counties with at least 30,000 residents. His bill expands eligibility to any elementary, middle or high school regardless of where they live and bumps up how much a family can make and still qualify.

Christofanelli’s bill increases the amount of funding available for students who qualify for free or reduced price school lunches, a national measure of poverty, and students who qualify for special education or limited English proficiency programs.

“There is a reason we appropriate more money, as a state, for those students,” he said of state funding formula for public schools. “And so I don’t see any reason why their scholarship amount shouldn’t be similarly adjusted.”

Currently, just 10 EAOs are allowed to administer scholarships annually. Christofanelli and Richey want to remove that cap in any year when donations exceed $25 million.

Their bills also seek to remove a requirement that home school parents must pass a background check before receiving any funds as part of the program.

More: SPS board member supports bill stripping state board of authority to accredit schools

In the hearing, Dent-Breen of Kansas City noted few homeschool families have been part of the program — just 14, she said — and she said the group opposes any change to make it easier for homeschool parents to participate.

“This idea is not popular among homeschool families — not popular. We don’t want funding. We don’t request funding,” she said. “It is completely unnecessary.”

Sheryl Schmidt, a lobbyist for the homeschool organization Families for Home Education, described the proposed changes as “well-intended.”

“But it’s dangerous for Missouri homeschool freedoms. We’re asking for homeschool to be removed from the MO Scholars program,” she said.

Schmidt said in other states that have approved programs to provide funding for families teaching their children at home, regulations and oversight have followed.

“For those participating, it definitely has entanglement if they are homeschooling their children because they have extra things they have to do, like the background check,” she said.

Scott Williamson, a pastor who founded the Neighborhood Christian Schools in Willow Springs, said he supports public schools but believes private options need to be an option and competition is good.

“If you are the monopoly in town, you have no reason to get better,” he said. “If you are the only game in town, there is no reason for you to excel at what you do or produce better for less.”

He said more families exploring private and homeschool options may, in turn, help public schools.

“It will make my public school better. I don’t think it will make it worse,” he said. “And it may help them get some priorities in the areas where they need to be.”

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Homeschool parents say effort to expand tax credit scholarships is ‘dangerous’ for them