What’s the story?
Indiana Gov. Mike Braun (R) signed the state budget bill—House Bill (HB) 1001—on May 6, 2025, which included provisions to remove income eligibility requirements from Indiana’s Choice Scholarship Program. This action makes the program universal, where all students are defined as eligible to participate in the private school choice voucher program in 2026.
Indiana is the fifth state to enact a universal school choice program in 2025, with all enacting states having Republican trifectas. Indiana is the 17th state overall to enact universal private school choice, and the 14th Republican trifecta.
The Indiana House of Representatives approved HB 1001 66-27; 65 Republicans and one Democrat supported it, and 25 Democrats and two Republicans opposed it. The Indiana Senate approved the bill 39-11; 38 Republicans and one Democrat supported it, and nine Democrats and two Republicans opposed it.
Choice Scholarship is a voucher program, awarding two payments per school year; HB 1001 increased it to four, effective July 1, 2025. The first Choice Scholarship award amount is either the tuition and fees reported on the participating student’s application at the relevant private school, or 90% of the state-per-student tuition support funding allocation based on the student’s school corporation of residence, whichever is less. The second Choice Scholarship award amounts are one-half of the first Choice Scholarship award amounts. HB 1001 made no changes to the amount of funds Choice scholarship recipients receive. The state pays the scholarship money directly to the schools, according to the Indiana Department of Education website.
The budget bill included a small decrease in funding per year for Indiana’s limited Education Scholarship Account (ESA) program, which provides money to families of students with disabilities. Indiana maintains two other limited school choice programs, the School Scholarship Tax Credit Program and a private school or homeschool tax deduction.
What is the background?
Indiana launched the Choice Scholarship Program in 2011 as a voucher program. In 2024, the legislature increased the maximum income for eligibility, making it available to students coming from families with higher incomes.
Indiana statute authorizing the Choice Scholarship Program provides that schools receiving Choice Scholarship funds maintain autonomy from state education regulations, but requires schools to provide instruction on core subject areas and instruction on the U.S. Constitution and the Indiana Constitution.
Schools must apply to be what the state calls a Choice School, or a school that is eligible to receive Choice Scholarship funds; the Indiana Department of Education determines eligibility of schools.
Betsy Wiley, President and CEO of the Institute for Quality Education, argued that the bill empowered students and parents to make the best educational choices for themselves.
Rep. Andrea Hunley (D), who opposed the expansion of the voucher program, argued that it would only help families who were already wealthy to receive public funds for private education.
To read more, visit Ballotpedia’s project on the impact of school choice on rural districts.
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