Limits to Arkansas school choice program diminish overall success, experts warn  

Experts are warning “regulatory creep” in Arkansas’ school choice program is a dangerous trend that could have negative consequences for families.

In the spring, the state Legislature passed SB 625, which limits how much money can be used for non-curricular expenses. 

SB 625 caps family spending at no more than 25% of the total amount on transportation, and another 25% on extracurricular activities, physical education programs or educational field trips.

The bill came after a study showed most of the money for homeschoolers provided under the Arkansas LEARNS Act was spent on non-curricular expenses, such as transportation and extracurricular activities.

The Arkansas LEARNS Act’s program, called Educational Freedom Accounts, provides funding for limited private or homeschool expenses. Phased in over three years, it’s now open to all K-12 students, costing the state $277.4 million for 2025-2026.

Critics of the bill note homeschools don’t use 80%-85% of their budget on salary and benefits for teachers and administrators, unlike public schools.

As a result, their curriculum spending is going to seem lower, they argue. 

Meanwhile, per-pupil spending for public schools in Arkansas is $13,258, while school choice programs provide only a $7,000 amount per pupil.  

“These new caps … require families to track their spending with extreme precision, adding new red tape and stress – especially for those who are still adjusting to how the program works,” said Policy Director J. Robertson at Opportunity Arkansas.

“These restrictions might sound minor on paper, but they make it more difficult for families to use the program. If a family accidentally exceeds these caps, they could be penalized under the bill’s new fraud provisions.”

Robert Enlow, President and CEO of EdChoice, and Michael McShane, the director of national research, said the new law is a sledgehammer-in-search-of-a-tack solution, noting there’s not one documented case of somebody misusing education funds.

Enlow and McShane warn the new rules subject the program to extreme regulatory oversight to neuter the program, in ways union’s sought to choke the charter school movement. 

“True education freedom requires not just parental choice but also a supply side that is freer to take risks unburdened by needless restrictions that protect the status quo,” they note.

Typically, homeschool recipients use a larger portion of their budget for items such as curriculum and education supplies than public schools.

The report underlying SB 625 showed “21.4% of this year’s voucher spending for homeschool students covered curriculum expenses, 27.4% paid for education supplies,” according to the Arkansas Times. Reports show public schools spend about 8% on instructional materials and as little as 4% on education supplies.

This means homeschoolers are investing more money in curriculum and classroom supplies than public schools – not just on a percentage basis, but in a real-dollar basis.

Meanwhile, public schools pass along a lot of the cost of supplies to parents.

Capital One reported American households paid $874.68 for back-to-school shopping, which is more than public school budgets allocate per pupil for classroom supplies. 

The Heartlander recently reported 91% of parents think their education expenses are “out of control,” with 53% saying back-to-school expenses this year are higher than last year.

If the regulatory creep continues, the school choice “revolution” won’t turn as far as it needs to bring real reform to K-12 schools, the EdChoice commentary concludes.

“Private schools will basically look like public schools, though performing marginally better and sprinkling in some religion, but not too much. They’ll top out at 10-15 percent of U.S. students,” said Enlow and McShane.