Nearly 92% Of U.S. Kids Qualify For The New $1,700 Federal Scholarship Tax Credit

An estimated 51.7 million children (91.7% of everyone eligible to enroll in a K-12 school) meet the income test to receive scholarships under the Education Freedom Tax Credit, the federal program launching January 1, 2027, according to a new report released Tuesday by the American Federation for Children.

The analysis is the first state-by-state estimate of who can actually receive money from the program, built on Census population estimates, American Community Survey microdata, and HUD income limits.

The credit was created as Section 25F of the tax code by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the same 2025 law that overhauled federal student loan borrowing.