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Good morning, Mike here with Chalkbeat New York.

As New York approaches the conclusion of its long-delayed state budget, Gov. Kathy Hochul made an announcement that surprised some education-watchers: she said she plans to opt the state into a federal tax credit program meant to fund school choice. The tax credit, passed in the Donald Trump-backed One Big Beautiful Bill Act, gives a dollar-for-dollar credit of up to $1,700 on federal taxes for donations to scholarship-granting organizations that could fund tuition costs at private schools. So far, only one Democratic governor has officially opted in. Supporters of school choice in the Empire State celebrated, while critics argued the program could undermine public education. Hochul said she’s still examining the program to ensure it doesn’t contain any “poison pills.” Our top story today has more.

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Local News

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul intends to opt into federal tax-credit scholarship

Democrats are divided on the federal school choice program. Gov. Hochul will watch for “poison pills” that would make the program a bad deal for New York students, a spokesperson said.

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