Gov. Kathy Hochul has opted New York into President Donald Trump’s Education Freedom Tax Credit Program, despite opposition from Democratic leaders, teachers unions and civil-rights groups.

The program lets individuals claim a tax credit of up to $1,700 for donations to scholarship organizations, which can support tuition at nonpublic schools and provide other grants to students in public and nonpublic schools; eligible families earn no more than 300% of their area’s median income.

Supporters argue that school choice gives families—particularly Black, Brown and working-class families seeking alternatives to underperforming, segregated public schools—more options, and point to Catholic and Jewish schools’ long history of educating students of modest means.

Thirty-one states have joined the program, but Hochul is one of only two Democratic governors to do so, alongside Colorado Gov. Jared Polis; she appears to have a safe reelection lead, and her Republican opponent, Bruce Blakeman, also supports it.

Hochul may be betting that public-school students and local budgets could benefit too, through federally supported transportation, tutoring, after-school programs and extracurricular activities.

New York City spends $1.35 billion annually on private placements for students with disabilities whom public schools cannot serve, so federal support for some of those costs could help the city; how public-school families would access such assistance remains unresolved.

Critics warn that public schools could lose funding when students leave, while opponents of that claim argue schools should not be funded for students they no longer educate; the author also cautions that better-off families could benefit even when funds might be more effectively directed to families with greater need.

With limited federal monitoring and enforcement requirements, state and local officials will need to decide whether existing laws ensure that participating schools and organizations provide quality services.

The article also questions whether nonpublic schools will adequately protect students from discrimination based on race, religion or gender, particularly as courts challenge such protections.

The author concludes that potential financial gains do not erase the civil-rights risks, while recognizing that scholarship options may still matter greatly to parents seeking a better education for their children.