Arizona law gives companies tax break for private school scholarships

Published: 2006-06-20

PHOENIX (CNS) -- A new Arizona law will allow corporations to earmark part of their state tax money for funding private school scholarships, providing more students with the opportunity to receive a Catholic education. The Arizona Corporate Tax Credit, set to begin in July, lets corporations claim a dollar-for-dollar income tax credit for contributions made to a student tuition organization. The Catholic Tuition Organization is banking on this new law in its efforts to provide additional scholarships to children of low-income families. "For the Catholic Tuition Organization and for families of students who attend Catholic schools in the Diocese of Phoenix, this means that there may be another pool of money to apply for scholarship awards," Karen Shepherd, the organization's executive director, told The Catholic Sun, Phoenix's diocesan newspaper. The corporate tax credit law has a $5 million cap statewide each fiscal year for five years. There is no cap per corporation. There are more than 50 student tuition organizations, known as STOs, vying for a piece of the newly available funds.

Copyright (c) 2006 Catholic News Service /U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The CNS news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed, including but not limited to such means as framing or any other digital copying or distribution method, in whole or in part without the prior written authority of Catholic News Service .