Federal Voucher Tax Credit Puts Private Interests Ahead of Maryland’s Public School Students

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 1, 2026

Contact: sharlimar douglass – mareealliance@gmail.com

Baltimore, MD – The Maryland Alliance for Racial Equity in Education (MAREE) remains opposed to Maryland’s participation in the Federal Voucher Tax Credit, and we are calling on Governor Moore to opt out of the program. Today, the federal government released its regulations regarding the program, and those rules only reinforce our concerns about a system that directs taxpayer resources toward private education without the accountability, transparency, and obligation to serve all students that Marylanders should expect.

Maryland’s public schools serve every student, including students with disabilities, multilingual learners, students from low-income backgrounds, and young people who need additional academic or behavioral support. Public schools are accountable to families, communities, and the public. The Federal Voucher Tax Credit does not create those same guarantees.

Through the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, our state made a generational commitment to students, families, and educators: to expand early childhood education, elevate and diversify the teaching profession, prepare every student for college and career, and direct additional resources to the students and communities that have been underserved for far too long. Those commitments are built on accountability and on the belief that every student deserves an excellent public education. The Federal Voucher Tax Credit runs counter to that vision. It shifts attention and resources toward private options that are not bound by the Blueprint’s standards, its accountability measures or its commitment to serve every child.

Under the program, taxpayer-subsidized donations flow through Scholarship Granting Organizations, or SGOs, which then distribute scholarships for qualifying education expenses. Yet states have limited ability to determine which students are prioritized, establish meaningful protections, or ensure participating private schools provide equitable access and high-quality educational opportunities.

The new regulations make one thing clear: additional rules cannot fix the fundamental problems with this program. Maryland should not opt into a federal voucher system that lacks strong accountability and does not require participating schools to serve the students who have historically been denied equitable educational opportunities.

Maryland’s participation is voluntary. Choosing not to participate does not mean taking existing federal funding away from Maryland public schools. This program is not a direct federal investment in our public school system; it is a tax-credit program built around private donations and SGOs.

Opting in, however, would carry real costs. The State would take on new administrative responsibilities to implement and oversee the program, and the full scope of those costs remains unknown. Maryland is already facing a structural deficit, and every dollar and staff hour spent standing up a private voucher system is one not spent fulfilling our obligations to public schools. At a moment when the State must make difficult budget choices, Maryland cannot afford to take on an open-ended commitment with no clear return for the students we are already obligated to serve.

MAREE’s position remains clear: Maryland should continue investing in a strong, equitable, transparent, and accountable public education system that serves every student. We urge Governor Moore to keep Maryland out of the Federal Voucher Tax Credit and continue prioritizing the public schools that our students and communities rely on.