A new education tax credit will soon be available to Georgia families following a Tuesday announcement by Gov. Brian Kemp (R).
Kemp said the state is opting in to a program through the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The credit became available as a provision of the Trump Administration’s most recent tax package, approved last year. It is an individual, dollar-for-dollar tax credit.
During his press conference, Kemp said this latest step is in the same vein as the Georgia Promise Scholarship Act, through which families can use tax dollars to choose education options for their child. He said 7,700 students have benefited in the one year it has been active.
“I’m proud to announce another tool for parents to use that will complement these achievements and further aid parents in supporting their children’s education,” said Kemp. “Upon my signature of an official form from the Internal Revenue Service, I’m opting Georgia into the federal tax credit scholarship program for school choice.”
The governor said this program is similar to the Georgia Gold scholarship program, a donor-funded school choice tax credit program, which was enacted in 2008.
“I’m grateful that the positive impacts of the Georgia Gold scholarship will not only be enhanced by this federal tax credit but also replicated across the country,” he said.
Kemp was joined by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones (R), who echoed the importance of opting into the federal program and allowing more parents greater control of school choice.
“They’ll be able to donate more of their hard-earned dollars towards those initiatives,” he explained. “We don’t ever want to say we are doing other things besides trying to improve public education and trying to improve private education, because the end of the day, if you care about the children who are in those schools, you will want to promote programs like the Georgia Gold Promise scholarship as well as this federal scholarship program as well.”
Rep. Jon Burns (R), Speaker of the Georgia House, said the legislature is looking forward to working with the administration to make the new program successful.
“We all know that our children are our future, and their future depends on their ability and our ability to provide them with quality education, whether it’s in the public school classrooms, private schools, or at home,” he said. “Now for the first time, Georgia taxpayers will have the ability receive federal and state tax credits for their contributions to students’ scholarship organizations. This means more resources will flow directly to students who need them the most, creating more opportunities and empowering more families in our state to make the best educational decisions for themselves and their children.”
The federal program allows a dollar-for-dollar tax credit, up to $1,700, per taxpayer. It includes contributions to state-approved, federally recognized non-profits that distribute scholarships to eligible children.
“Just as we trust that Georgians know best how to spend their tax dollars, we also trust families to make the best decisions for their child’s education,” said Kemp. “That’s probably the happiest I’ve ever been signing an IRS document.”
The new tax credit will be available beginning Jan. 1, 2027.
