529 Plans and School Choice

Abstract

Some politicians believe that market-based approaches to education will meaningfully reshape public education in the United States. Advocates of school choice insist that competition for students will improve academic outcomes, drive innovation and improvement, and reduce political interference in the education system. Critics believe that there is little empirical support for any of these claims, and fear that school choice policies worsen the problem of educational inequality. The purpose of this essay is not to rehash the topic of school choice, which has been exhaustively considered and debated by academia, think tanks, media and government. This is a thought piece intended to shine a light upon the problematic use of the Internal Revenue Code to support state and local school choice policy.

Keywords: school choice, 529, 529 plans, tax, internal revenue code, tax incentives, tax expenditure, education, inequality, equity, equality, primary education, secondary education