Standing before students and teachers at St. Teresa Catholic School in Lincoln, Gov. Jim Pillen signed an executive order Monday to opt Nebraska into a new federal scholarship tax credit program.
Supporters are hailing the move as “a game changer,” while critics blasted it as a repeat of policies voters already rejected on the 2024 general election ballot.
The program, created under President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill signed this summer, allows taxpayers to claim a dollar-for-dollar federal income tax credit of up to $1,700 for donations to approved scholarship-granting organizations. Those organizations would then distribute K-12 scholarships beginning in 2027, with funds usable for private school tuition, tutoring, or other educational expenses.
Pillen framed the decision as seizing an opportunity for Nebraska families.
“This program is a game-changer for Nebraska students and their families, generating funds that will help send students to the school of their choice,” Pillen said. “We’re not just opting in — we’re cannonballing in.”
Nebraska 3rd District Rep. Adrian Smith, a Republican who championed the provision in Congress, called it a way to “dial down the politics” around education funding. First District Rep. Mike Flood added that the measure will allow families who otherwise couldn’t afford private tuition to “pick the school that they want to go to.”
Nebraska is one of only two states without an existing school choice program.
School choice advocacy groups quickly praised the move. The American Federation for Children called the announcement “a monumental step toward bringing school choice to every state.” Americans for Prosperity-Nebraska said the decision ensures “families, not school systems, are best equipped” to decide their children’s education. Additionally, the group Opportunity Scholarships of Nebraska, which previously managed the short-lived state-level program, said it stands ready to guide parents in accessing scholarships.
Public education advocates, however, argued the governor’s decision defies recent history. Nebraska voters repealed a similar program, LB 1402, at the ballot box in 2024 after rolling back the Opportunity Scholarships Act (LB 753).
“This decision ignores the will of Nebraska voters,” said Dunixi Guereca, executive director of Stand For Schools. “Research shows voucher programs don’t improve academic outcomes and often allow discrimination while draining resources from public schools.”
Nebraska State Education Association President Tim Royers said the federal program is even more expansive than the state-level measures voters overturned.
“This federal program is a backdoor voucher scheme that diverts public resources into private systems, without accountability or limits,” Royers said, warning that eligibility could extend to six-figure households while rural districts see little benefit.
The tax credit program will not take effect until January 2027. Pillen’s administration will work with school choice groups to prepare a list of qualified scholarship-granting organizations for the U.S. Treasury Department. Participating students must be eligible to attend a public school, and families must earn no more than 300 percent of their area median income. The Treasury Department is expected to provide additional regulation around the program moving forward.
For now, Pillen and Nebraska’s congressional Republicans are celebrating an early win. Critics say the fight over school choice in the state is far from finished.