Alabama

Alabama offers K–12 students and their families several types of school choice, including two private school choice programs, charter schools, magnet schools and homeschooling. 

Education Scholarship Program

• Alabama offers a refundable tax credit program to parents who transfer their children enrolled in or assigned to a failing public school to a non-failing public or private school. Different from traditional tax credit programs, refundable tax credits have greater value for parents of more modest incomes.
• Enacted 2013

Program Rules:

• • Income Limit: 100 percent x FRL 
  • Prior Year Public School Requirement: Yes, with exceptions Geographic Limit: Statewide 
  • Enrollment Cap: None 
  • Scholarship Cap: $6,000 (K–5), $8,000 (6–8), $10,000 (9–12) 
  • Testing Mandates: State test or Nationally norm-referenced tests 
  • Credit Value: 100% 
  • Per Donor Credit Cap: 50% liability up to $50,000 (individual) / 50% liability (business) 
  • Total Tax Credit Cap: $30 million 

Accountability Act of 2013 Parent-Taxpayer Refundable Tax Credits

• Alabama’s Education Scholarship Program is a tax-credit scholarship, which allows taxpayers who donate to nonprofit scholarship-granting organizations to receive tax credits for their contributions.
• Enacted 2013

Program Rules:

• • Income Limit: None
  • Prior Year Public School Requirement: Yes (Families must show a cost of transfer from a failing public school to a non-failing public school or a private school. Families may continue to receive the tax credit or rebate until the student reaches the highest grade level of the failing public school they are zoned to attend.)
  • Geographic Limit: Statewide
  • Enrollment Cap: None
  • Credit Value: 100%
  • Individual Credit / Rebate Cap: lessor of tuition or 80% state average
  • Testing Mandates: State  test or Nationally norm-referenced tests
  • Limited to students in low-performing schools

To find out more about educational choice programs in your state, please complete the below form.