Scholarships are funded by donations to scholarship-granting organizations. Businesses may receive tax credits for donations to SGOs. Rhode Island allocates $1.5 million for tax credits meant for SGO donations. SGOs determine scholarship amounts.

Students must have family incomes at or below 250 percent of the poverty level ($62,750 for a family of four in 2018–19).

Rhode Island’s tax-credit scholarship is severely limited by its extremely low $1.5 million cap for available funding, which can provide only a tiny fraction of the scholarships demanded. Only about one-third of potential donors have been able to participate in any given year. The program does have several positive features as well. The 75 percent credit (if donating for one year or 90 percent if donating for two years) offers an attractive opportunity for corporations to continue supporting the program. SGOs have the flexibility to determine their own student funding amounts. Regulations on private schools are reasonable and unobtrusive. Schools must comply with health, safety and nondiscrimination laws, employ teachers with bachelor’s degrees and conduct teacher background checks. The program could serve more children if policymakers would increase the overall cap or add an escalator clause, similar to Florida’s or New Hampshire’s, to allow the program to grow to meet demand.

• • Income Limit: 250 percent x Poverty
  • Prior Year Public School Requirement: None
  • Geographic Limit: Statewide
  • Enrollment Cap: None
  • Scholarship Cap: None
  • Testing Mandates: None
  • Credit Value: 75 percent / 90 percent
  • Credit Cap: $100,000
  • Budget Cap: $1.5 million

SGO Requirements:

• • Use at least 90 percent of contributions for scholarships
  • Provide annual report to the state detailing number and value of scholarships awarded, ZIP Codes of recipients and criteria used to award scholarships

R.I.G.L. §§ 44-62-1 through 44-62-7

No legal challenges have been filed against the program.