Washington, D.C. – National Alliance for Public Charter Schools President and CEO Nina Rees released the following statement on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act:
“We are grateful that Congress protected Private Activity Bonds (PABs) and New Market Tax Credits (NMTCs) in the final tax bill that will soon be signed by the President. Though imperfect, these financial tools are vital to acquiring safe and appropriate charter school space. The elimination of Qualified Zone Academy Bonds (QZABs) and Advance Refunding will be a hardship for some of our schools. We look forward to working with Congress in the coming year to develop financing tools that will serve our schools, students and taxpayers more effectively.”
About Public Charter Schools
Public charter schools are independent, public, and tuition-free schools that are given the freedom to be more innovative while being held accountable for advancing student achievement. Since 2010, many research studies have found that students in charter schools do better in school than their traditional school peers. For example, one study by the Center for Research on Education Outcomes at Stanford University found that charter schools do a better job teaching low income students, minority students, and students who are still learning English than traditional schools. Separate studies by the Center on Reinventing Public Education and Mathematica Policy Research have found that charter school students are more likely to graduate from high school, go on to college, stay in college and have higher earnings in early adulthood.
About the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools
The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools is the leading national nonprofit organization committed to advancing the public charter school movement. Our mission is to lead public education to unprecedented levels of academic achievement by fostering a strong charter sector. For more information, please visit www.publiccharters.org.
