At the beginning of each year, thousands of taxpayers rush to support Georgia families by submitting a tax credit application for the Qualified Education Expense Tax Credit. Through the Tax Credit and participating scholarship organizations, Georgia is expanding K-12 educational access, increasing diversity in private school communities and saving Georgia taxpayers millions.
Demand for this popular program is so strong that, on the first day taxpayers can apply, the statewide demand for tax credits more than doubles the available $120 million statewide cap on available credits. That level of enthusiasm shows a thirst among participating Georgia taxpayers and families for better K-12 educational opportunities and outcomes.
A new report from the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts (DOAA) confirms just how meaningful the program has become. While debates about school choice can be loud and political, the data here are refreshingly straightforward.
Opening the Doors of Opportunity for Low-Income Families
The most striking finding of the DOAA report is also the simplest: a large share of scholarships is reaching low-income families who otherwise could not afford private school tuition. In 2023, 37% of all scholarships went to families earning below 125% of the federal poverty level, and 41% of scholarship dollars went to that same group. Families below 400% of the federal poverty level were given 86% of scholarship dollars.
Private education has historically been out of reach for many families. The report shows that Georgia’s tax credit scholarship is actively changing that. Since the program began, the share of private school students from the lowest income group has nearly doubled statewide. The scholarship isn’t just moving students between schools. It’s pulling entire income groups into educational environments they previously could not afford.
Win-Win: Saving State Funds While Helping Students
In addition to the many benefits of the scholarship program, in order for the tax credit to merely break even for taxpayers, the report shows that only 56% to 63% of students on scholarship would need to be considered “switchers.” These students are scholarship recipients who switched from public schools to private schools because they had access to a SSO scholarship. The Georgia GOAL Scholarship Program is Georgia’s largest student scholarship organization, processing over half of the tax credits statewide. Using data from Georgia GOAL on over 13,000 students who received scholarships during the 10-year period from 2015-2024, the switcher rate for GOAL scholarship recipients was 87%. This closely resembles the 90% switcher rate found in empirical studies of other state scholarship programs, and results in an estimated net annual state fiscal savings of $24.2 million, as well as an annual local taxpayer savings of $32.2 million.
A More Diverse Private School System
The report also highlights something rarely discussed: Georgia’s private schools are becoming more racially and economically diverse, and this shift aligns with the growth of this tax credit. As more low-income families enter private schools, the population has become meaningfully more reflective of the state as a whole. Policymakers often talk about equity in education and this program is delivering it.
A Program Reaching Every Corner of Georgia
Students in 153 of Georgia’s 159 counties received a scholarship this past year. This isn’t a metro Atlanta program. It is a statewide effort touching nearly every community.
The scale of the impact is substantial: In 2022 alone, the program served nearly 13% of all private school students in Georgia.
High Demand and Deep Trust from Georgia Taxpayers
The demand for this program has never been higher. The report shows that the tax credit has been fully consumed on the first day of the year for several years. In addition, over 90% of contributors are repeat donors, and more than a quarter donated in all six years analyzed by the report. That kind of loyalty is rare in public programs and it signals widespread confidence that the program is worthwhile, well-run and achieving its intended goals.
The Benefits Extend Beyond Private Schools
The report also reviewed decades of national research on school choice and found something important: programs like Georgia’s often benefit scholarship students and generate positive ripple effects for traditional public schools. The report references 22 studies that have shown the benefits of school choice programs across the country. Increased competition has been shown in multiple studies to modestly boost public school performance.
A Program Worth Protecting and Expanding
The data tells a clear story. These tax credits are a pathway to opportunity for families who need choices the most. It’s helping reshape the economic and racial composition of private schools. It enjoys overwhelming public support. And it serves tens of thousands of students in virtually every part of the state.
As the debate around education in Georgia continues, this program deserves recognition for what it already is: one of the state’s most effective, equitable and publicly supported tools for expanding educational opportunity.
The evidence shows it’s working. Now the question is whether, by doubling the annual cap on credits to $250 million, Georgia lawmakers will continue to champion a program that families rely on and that donors wholeheartedly support.