Senate Bill 87 drew extended testimony at a Kansas Senate Education Committee hearing on proposals to expand the state’s low‑income student scholarship tax‑credit program, adjust the tax credit for donors, and change verification and cap procedures for scholarship‑granting organizations (SGOs).

Tamara Lawrence, committee reviser, summarized the bill’s main changes: it would add categories of students eligible for scholarships (those who have been in foster care or kinship placement; students whose parent is on active duty in the military or was killed in the line of duty; and students with a parent who is an EMS provider, firefighter or law‑enforcement officer) with no income threshold for those categories; require the State Department of Education to provide eligibility verification in writing within 45 days of an SGO request; increase the taxpayer credit from 75% to 100% of contribution; and allow the Secretary of Revenue to raise the program ceiling above the current $10 million cap by 25% (but not to exceed $20 million) if reclaimed credits exceed 75% of the existing cap. The bill would take effect July 1 upon publication in the statute book.

Proponents emphasized family access, incremental program growth and demand. Vincent Ansch, executive director of the Catholic Education Foundation, said his organization supports 2,360 families statewide and cited a KSDE figure that the state cost to educate one child in public school is $18,324. Ansch said scholarship funding saved the state about $43 million in the cited year and described strong graduation and post‑secondary metrics among students his SGO supports. Jamie Finkledye, associate superintendent for the Catholic Diocese of Wichita, said SGOs statewide reached $8.2 million in contributions last year and that continued increases will be limited without a higher cap.

Opponents warned of fiscal and accountability concerns. Leah Flieder (Kansas Association of School Boards) and Erin Woods (Game On for Kansas Schools) said a 100% tax credit effectively directs public tax dollars to private schools and questioned whether the program saves the state money, noting public schools still incur fixed costs. Woods summarized her position: “100% tax credits are tax avoidance, not charity.” Kansas PTA representative Mary Sinclair told the committee that prior years left program funds unclaimed and said the program’s recent eligibility and cap changes have already widened the pool of eligible families.

Committee members raised reporting and oversight questions. Senator Sykes asked for more granular data on applications, approvals and funds actually distributed to students; proponents said SGOs track each student and that statute requires funds be spent within three years, and they offered to provide more detailed data to the committee. Senators also asked about the program’s intent and whether expansions would dilute benefits for the lowest‑income students.

No formal committee votes were taken at the hearing. Committee members closed testimony and indicated staff would circulate written materials and any additional requested data to members.