Alabama implements the CHOOSE Act, providing educational savings accounts to families with incomes at or below 300% of the federal poverty level. The program prioritizes special needs students and military dependents.
It’s due to the CHOOSE Act, one of Gov. Kay Ivey’s top priorities in the last legislative session, which was signed into law and went into effect Jan. 2. 'This program will be effective and sustainable,' Ivey said while promoting the act in her 2024 State of the State speech. 'We will be helping families who might not otherwise have the option to afford to send their children to the school of their choice.
' The act provides $7,000 for those attending private schools, and $2,000 for homeschool students. The money will be allocated through an educational savings account for eligible expenses. 'These eligible expenses range from items like tuition and fees at participating schools, home school curriculum and program materials for home school students,' explained Cameran Clark, who serves as the Director of Tax Policy and Governmental Affairs at the Alabama Department of Revenue. 'Also, down to educational therapies like dyslexia and dysgraphia therapies for students with special needs.' The money goes to families with an income at or below 300% of the federal poverty level: That’s $77,460 a year for a family of 3. First priority is for special needs students, and second priority is for dependents of active-duty military members and for those that would otherwise be allocated to a poor performing public school. 'Many states already have education savings accounts, so Alabama’s not the first,' Clark said. 'That does kind of help with these types of programs, we learn from the experience of others.
EDUCATION SAVINGS ACCOUNT CHOOSE ACT ALABAMA SCHOOL CHOICE SPECIAL NEEDS STUDENTS
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