True education freedom is when tax dollars follow the student, not the district. Per pupil spending in public schools is increasing yet academic achievement is declining under the weight of far-left teachers’ unions and bad policies. The solution: Let families escape from failing government schools. But where do they flee to?
We launched www.RestoringEdu.com to answer that question. Our latest project is the Restoration of Education, a powerful and growing tool that shines a light on education freedom laws—or lack thereof—in your state, from homeschooling to test scores.
While each state and locality may use different methods of taxation to raid your wallet for public school funding, it’s YOUR hard-earned money. So why do elected officials fight against that money being allocated based upon individual needs? Especially when a third of 8th grade public school students can’t read at a basic level.
It’s not just blue states failing to offer education freedom to families—even many Republicans have historically opposed school choice legislation. Kentucky has no options for children to escape failing public schools unless families have the financial means to pay for private education. Even though the state voted overwhelmingly for President Trump, Kentuckians rejected a ballot initiative that would’ve amended the state constitution to permit education tax dollars to be used for non-public schools. It’s perhaps an indication that people don’t understand the benefits of education freedom.
Fortunately, the tide is changing. Republicans across the nation are awakening to a powerful need to overhaul the way children are educated, with more red states passing laws enabling school choice. In 2023, Iowa enacted the Students First Act that permits state education funding to be available to children enrolled in private school. In March 2025, Wyoming’s Governor signed school choice legislation that will provide $7,000 per child for non-public school costs.
Meanwhile, Democrats spread lies meant to instill fear on the “threat” of greater school choice. Their argument against education freedom is that public schools will suffer if tax dollars are returned to families for purposes of school choice—but that isn’t reality.
