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News Regional & State News Debate heats up on proposed changes to Education Improvement Tax Credit
Tuesday, 18 October 2011 09:08

Debate heats up on proposed changes to Education Improvement Tax Credit

Written by  Mary Wilson

(Harrisburg) -- A left-leaning think tank is skeptical the governor’s plan to expand the state’s Education Improvement Tax Credit program without more closely watching money and academic performance is a good idea. The EITC initiative gives tax credits to businesses that fund private school scholarships and public school extracurricular programs. Stephen Herzenberg, who runs the Keystone Research Center, says there’s no meaningful financial or education accountability built into it. "There’s a certain amount of self-reporting of how money is used, or the number of scholarships given out, but it’s very, very basic information on the financial side. Accountability was pretty much paper-thin, is one way to put it," Herzenberg says. State Representative Jim Christiana, a Beaver County Republican and proponent of expanding EITC, says businesses should be responsible for donating to schools they think use their money wisely. The state earmarks $75 million to EITC and Governor Corbett has called for an increase in that funding as part of his education reform plan.

Last modified on Tuesday, 18 October 2011 14:20

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