Governor Josh Shapiro Must Reject Trump’s Voucher Scheme.

HARRISBURG – (October 2, 2026) On October 1, 2026 , the US Treasury released temporary regulations that will govern the school voucher program included in Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act for 2027. 

“The regulations confirm what we already knew: Trump’s school vouchers will benefit wealthy families, support private school discrimination, and leave Pennsylvania’s public schools behind,” said Susan Spicka, executive director of Education Voters of PA. “These regulations remove any doubt that Governor Shapiro must reject Trump’s federal voucher program.”

The regulations clarify that states will have no authority to prohibit federal voucher dollars from funding private and religious schools that discriminate against their students or employees because of their disability, religion, academics, LGBTQ+ status, pregnancy or abortion, and more.

They also make clear that states will not be able to direct voucher funding to families with the greatest financial need. Instead, with federal income limits allowing approximately 96% of families to receive vouchers by the Treasury’s estimation, these dollars would pay for the private school tuition for all but the wealthiest families in the commonwealth.

The question of if and how public school students might be able to access limited funding through this program remains unanswered, as the regulations fail to define the programs and services that voucher dollars can pay for. The Treasury states that this information should come out by the end of the year. 

What it would cost Pennsylvania to administer the program also remains unknown.

“The federal voucher program is paid for by diverting individuals’ tax dollars out of the federal treasury and into scholarship granting organizations. The Treasury Department estimates that by 2030, the IRS could lose $26 billion dollars in tax revenue per year under the voucher program ,” said Felicity Williams, executive director of the Pennsylvania Policy Center.

“In addition, states will have substantial responsibilities to run the program. With no federal funding to pay for these costs, Pennsylvania taxpayers would  be on the hook to set up the program and pay for staff to administer it. The Florida legislature has allocated $2 million to the Florida Department of Education to develop an administrative platform for the Trump school voucher program. This does not include funding for recurring costs that will be required to administer the program each year. Under no circumstances should Pennsylvania opt into the program without conducting a full cost analysis of what administering this program will require from Pennsylvania taxpayers.” 

Governor Shapiro’s decision on participating in the Trump school voucher program will have enormous, long-lasting ramifications for educational resource allocation and equity in the commonwealth. Trump’s school voucher program is designed to expand privatized education and funnel tax dollars into intermediary organizations, not strengthen public schools. Governor Shapiro must reject this program. 

Please find attached a letter signed by 17 organizations urging Governor Shapiro to reject Trump’s private school voucher scheme. 

#############

Read Our Letter Here: https://edvoterspa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Shapiro-Letter.pdf