States with and without universal school choice programs

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  • Texas case study on legislative support and opposition
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This article provides an overview of universal school choice programs across the 50 states. It highlights which states offer at least one of the following types of programs for which all students in the state are eligible:

• voucher systems,
• education savings accounts (ESAs), or
• education tax credit programs.

HIGHLIGHTS

Eighteen (18) states have universal private school choice programs. Of the 24 universal school choice programs the states run, 10 are education savings account (ESA) programs, 10 are educational tax credit programs, and four are voucher programs. Some states run limited school choice programs in addition to universal programs.

Fifteen (15) states have limited but not universal private school choice programs, and another 17 states do not have any private school choice programs.

Of the states with universal school choice, 15 are Republican trifectas and three have divided governments.

Six (6) Republican trifecta states do not have universal private school choice programs; two Republican trifecta states do not have any private school choice programs.

What is universal school choice?
Private school choice refers to policies and programs that provide public funds for alternatives to public schools, such as private schools and homeschooling. These policies include education savings accounts (ESAs), school vouchers, and education tax credit systems. A universal school choice program is one for which all students are eligible, regardless of family income, location, demographic, or disability. In contrast, non-universal school choice programs are available to a subset of qualifying students, such as students in families with income below a certain threshold, students with disabilities or special needs, or students zoned for certain schools or living in certain districts.

Types of programs

This page covers the following policies:

• Education savings account (ESA) programs provide public funding for eligible students that families can use on approved educational alternatives to assigned public schools. Qualifying alternatives often include private school tuition, tutoring services, transportation to school, or homeschooling supplies.
• Voucher programs pay for eligible students to attend private schools. The funds typically transfer directly from the government to the school.
• Education tax-credit programs provide tax incentives to individuals and businesses for supporting education and usually take one of the following forms:

• Tax-credit scholarships allow individuals and businesses to lower their tax burden by donating to scholarship funds, which provide private school tuition assistance.
• Individual tax credits/deductions allow families to reduce their state tax liability for approved education expenses, such as tuition, textbooks, or tutoring.
• Tax-credit ESAs allow tax credits for donations to fund Education Savings Accounts, which families can use for a range of educational expenses.

To see a breakdown of these programs by state, click here.

Universal school choice by state

The following map shows which states had universal, restricted, or no school choice programs by trifecta status as of June 2025.

• 18 states have universal school choice programs.

• 15 in Republican trifectas.
• Zero in a Democratic trifecta.
• Three in divided governments.

• 15 states have limited school choice programs.

• Six in Republican trifectas.
• Three in Democratic trifectas.
• Six states in divided governments.

• 17 states have no school choice programs.

• Two in Republican trifectas.
• 12 in Democratic trifectas.
• Three states in divided governments.

Private school choice programs are categorized as universal when any student in the state can qualify for benefits. Universal programs, however, vary widely regarding the benefit amount and the funding available, the type of program, the number of students using the program, and the accessibility of the funding. For example, Minnesota's education tax deduction program provided an average benefit of a $1,307 tax deduction per student as of 2024, while Arizona's ESA program provided an average benefit of $9,782 in an ESA account.

The following map shows which states do not have universal school choice programs. It highlights states that do not have any private school choice programs and states that have private school choice programs for which a subset, but not all, students qualify.

Universal school choice programs by state

This section contains information about the 18 states with universal school choice and their universal programs.

Universal school choice programs
State	Type of program	Program name	Year enacted
Arizona	Education Savings Account (ESA)	Empowerment Scholarship Accounts	2011
Arizona	Tax-Credit Scholarship	Original Individual Income Tax Credit Scholarship Program	1997
Arkansas	Education Savings Account (ESA)	Arkansas Children’s Educational Freedom Account Program	2023
Florida	Education Savings Account (ESA)	Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options Program	2019
Florida	Tax-Credit Education Savings Account	Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program	2001
Idaho	Individual credit/deduction	Idaho Parental Choice Tax Credit	2025
Indiana	Voucher	Indiana Choice Scholarship Program	2025
Iowa	Individual Tax Credit/Deduction	Education Savings Account Program	2023
Iowa	Individual Tax Credit/Deduction	Tuition and Textbook Tax Credit	1987
Louisiana	Education Savings Account (ESA)	Louisiana Giving All True Opportunity to Rise (LA GATOR) Scholarship Program	2024
Minnesota	Individual Tax Credit/Deduction	Education Deduction	1955
Montana	Tax-Credit Scholarship	Tax Credits for Contributions to Student Scholarship Organizations	2015
New Hampshire	Education Savings Account (ESA)	Education Freedom Account Program	2021
North Carolina	Voucher	Opportunity Scholarships	2013
Ohio	Individual Tax Credit/Deduction	Ohio Tax-Credit Scholarship Program	2021
Ohio	Individual Tax Credit/Deduction	K–12 Nonchartered Private School Tax Credit	2021
Ohio	Individual Tax Credit/Deduction	K–12 Home Education Tax Credit	2021
Ohio	Voucher	Educational Choice Scholarship Program	2005
Oklahoma	Individual Tax Credit/Deduction	Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit Act	2023
Tennessee	Voucher	Education Freedom Scholarship Program	2025
Texas	Education Savings Account (ESA)	Education Savings Account Program	2025
Utah	Education Savings Account (ESA)	Utah Fits All Scholarship Program	2023
West Virginia	Education Savings Account (ESA)	Hope Scholarship Program	2021
Wyoming	Education Savings Account (ESA)	Steamboat Legacy Scholarship	2025

History of universal school choice policies

This section provides an overview of the history of universal school choice programs in the United States.

The history of universal school choice in the U.S. began with Minnesota's education tax deduction in 1955, followed by Arizona's Tax-Credit Scholarship Program in 1997. In 2021, West Virginia launched the first universal Education Savings Account (ESA), which has since become the most common type of universal school choice program. As of March 2025, nine Republican trifecta states had enacted universal ESAs since 2021. In 2025, Idaho, Tennessee, and Wyoming passed universal private school choice legislation.

Latest news

This timeline shows the three most recent updates. This page is updated when school choice-related bills become law or courts issue rulings that affect school choice programs.

• July 15, 2025: A Laramie County District Court judge instituted a preliminary injunction on Wyoming's universal Steamboat Legacy private school choice program, preventing payouts to families during litigation over the legality of the program. The program was enacted by the state legislature in March 2025 and set to begin on July 1, 2025, but was delayed on June 27, 2025, then temporarily blocked on July 15.
• June 24, 2025: A judge in Franklin County, Ohio, ruled that Ohio's EdChoice Scholarship, a universal school choice voucher program, violated the Ohio Constitution by funding private schools at the expense of public schools. The case is expected to be appealed in Ohio's Tenth District Court of Appeals. The program has remained active during litigation.
• June 10, 2025: New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte (R) signed SB295 to remove income thresholds from New Hampshire's Education Freedom Account Program, making it available to all students regardless of income. The Education Freedom Account Program is an education savings account program.
• May 6, 2025: Indiana Governor Mike Braun (R) signed HB 1001 to make Indiana's Choice Scholarship Program universal, meaning that every student in the state is eligible for a voucher. HB 1001 removed the income eligibility requirements from the Choice Scholarship Program.
• May 3, 2025: Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) signed SB 2, establishing a universal education savings account (ESA) program. The law, which was set to take effect during the 2026-27 school year, would provide for taxpayer-funded accounts for private or homeschool education in the state.
• April 23, 2025: North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong (R) vetoed House Bill (HB) 1540, which would have established a universal education savings account (ESA) program. Armstrong argued in his veto message that though he supported expanding school choice in the state, HB 1540 would only benefit a narrow slice of the student population. The North Dakota Legislature was unsuccessful in overriding the veto.
• April 18, 2025: Utah Third Judicial District Judge Laura Scott ruled that Utah's universal ESA program, Utah Fits All, violated the Utah Constitution because its funding source—income tax dollars—is designated for nonsectarian public education. On April 23, Scott ruled the program could continue to operate while the state appeals her ruling.

Universal school choice policies enacted from 2023 through 2024

Listed here are the universal school choice policies enacted in 2023 and 2024.

2024

One state adopted a new universal school choice law in 2024.

• Louisiana (Republican trifecta): Gov. Jeff Landry (R) signed SB 313, establishing the LA Gator Scholarship Program, an ESA program for eligible students. The program will expand to all students in 2025.

One state's universal school choice law expired in 2024.

• Illinois (Democratic trifecta): Illinois became the first state to roll back its school voucher program when its tax-credit scholarship program, known as "Invest in Kids," expired on January 1, 2024. The Illinois legislature declined to extend the program during its 2023 session, citing concerns over public school funding and accountability for private schools receiving public funds.

2023

Four states created new universal school choice programs in 2023.

• Arkansas (Republican trifecta): Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) signed the Arkansas LEARNS Act on March 9, 2023, creating Education Freedom Accounts, among other provisions. The accounts provide eligible students with around $6,600 for eligible expenses. In the 2025-26 school year, eligibility will expand to include all students. 
• Iowa (Republican trifecta): Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) in January 2023 signed a bill creating the Education Savings Account program. The program provides about $7,500 for approved educational expenses and will be available to all students in 2025 or 2026.
• Oklahoma (Republican trifecta): Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) signed the Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit program in December 2023, providing refundable tax credits of $5,000 to $7,500 per child for private school tuition and $1,000 for homeschool educational expenses.
• Utah (Republican trifecta): Gov. Spencer Cox (R) signed HB 215 in January 2023, creating the Utah Fits All Scholarship, among other provisions. All students are eligible for the accounts, which will receive about $8,000 for approved educational expenses per year.

One state expanded an existing ESA program to cover all students in 2023.

• Florida (Republican trifecta): Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) on March 27, 2023, expanded the state’s Family Empowerment Scholarship program to provide all K-12 students with around $7,500 for educational expenses. The program was initially launched in 2019 but was restricted to a subset of students. 

See also

Other school choice-related content:

• Impact of school choice on rural school districts
• States with and without universal school choice programs
• School choice in the United States
• School choice glossary
• Policy and reform proposals related to the impact of school choice on rural districts
• Arguments about the effects of universal school choice on rural school districts
• Case studies on legislative support for and opposition to universal school choice legislation (2023-2024)
• State-by-state analysis of legislative representation

Other education policy content

• Public education in the United States
• K-12 education content standards in the states
• K-12 curriculum authority, requirements, and statutes in the states

External links

• EdChoice, "School Choice in America Dashboard"
• Search Google News for this topic

Footnotes

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