H.R.956 – Education Improvement Tax Cut Act
Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) has introduced a bill that will allow for up to $5,000 (married, filing jointly) in tax credits for homeschooling families who have qualified expenses as reimbursement for instructional materials and materials for extracurricular activities.
There have been some questions as to whether this bill actually applies to homeschoolers and the simple answer is “Yes!” Rep. Paul is pro-homeschooling and this bill is aimed at parents who homeschool or have their children enrolled in a private institution. The purpose of this bill is to lower your tax burden because you are not taking the government’s services by not sending your children to the publicly funded educational institutions for which you pay taxes.
I understand that some parents have reservations about this sort of tax credit. It seems to mean more government intrusion. To address this issue, consider who has introduced the bill. Rep. Paul is dedicated to taking the government out of your family’s private life and stopping the government from nickel-and-diming you. Think for a moment about how much you are spending on one child’s educational materials per school year. I’m guessing that it’s somewhere between $500 and $1,500, or possibly much more (perhaps that figure can go down once our free homeschool curriculum is fully functional!). That may seem like a hefty amount at first, but now consider how much is spent per student, per year in a public school. According to a policy analysis by Adam B. Schaeffer of The Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom, that figure ranges from about $12,000 on the low end to nearly $27,000 on the upper end. Yep, you read that correctly. You can read the full analysis in .pdf or HTML.
How do we get H.R. 956 passed?
H.R. 956 has been introduced and referred to committee. Rep. Paul is the only sponsor at the moment. To help get this bill passed, write to your representative and tell him or her that you want them to cosponsor or vote to pass this bill. Let’s get the homeschooling community in America to rally together to show support for this bill!
We’ll be updating on H.R. 956′s progress and posting reminders to take action.
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