When it comes to school choice, Gov. Josh Shapiro often finds himself in hot water.

In 2023, he shook hands on a budget deal that included a $100 million scholarship program for kids stuck in Pennsylvania’s worst-performing schools–a program which he endorsed as a candidate. But after teacher unions and partisan Democrats pressed him, he vetoed what could have been a transformational opportunity for thousands of Pennsylvania kids.

Now, a new opportunity looms on the horizon–and the governor again appears hesitant to commit.

On July 5, 2025, federal lawmakers passed the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit (FSTC) program. This new program offers dollar-for-dollar tax-deductible donations up to $1,700, creating K-12 scholarships that cover tuition, tutoring, books, and other education-related expenses.

But before Pennsylvania kids can benefit from this first-of-its-kind program, Shapiro must opt in. And you can safely bet on the same moneyed interests that pressured him before will up to their same tricks again.

However, this time is different. This time, some of Shapiro’s party is slowly but surely accepting the “radical” notion that lawmakers should listen to the concerns of parents and students instead of caving in to the whims of teacher unions. In fact, some Democrats have already jumped on the school choice train.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis was the first Democratic governor to adopt the FSTC. Calling his decision a “no-brainer,” he recognized this program for what it is: a commonsense solution that generates more resources for students and families.

“It supports donors to give more money to our schools,” Polis said. “I mean, I would be crazy not to.”

Unfortunately, some Democratic governors are that crazy, but the FSTC has persevered despite their intransigence.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly — both Democratic governors with Republican-led legislatures — vetoed opt-in bills. However, both state legislatures overrode the vetoes with sizable majorities.

Arizona is facing the same resistance. Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed an opt-in bill not once but twice.

“It would be irresponsible to sign this bill before the federal government has released any regulatory guidance,” Hobbs says in her veto statement.

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein, another Democrat, offered a similar response. After vetoing an opt-in bill, he stated his intention to opt in when federal policymakers provide more specific guidance.

“I intend to opt North Carolina in so we can invest in the public school students most in need of after-school programs, tutoring, and other resources,” the governor said, highlighting that public school students can also receive scholarship funding.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul also announced her intention to conditionally opt in. While claiming to be “supportive of the federal tax credit scholarship,” Hochul also “awaits information from the federal government” before she fully committing.

To be fair, Shapiro has also adopted this overly cautious posture.

But this timidity isn’t warranted. The U.S. Department of Education has already released that guidance, “spelling out exactly how the program works,” writes Education Secretary Linda McMahon.

Plus, Shapiro should already know that tax-credit scholarships are already in high demand in Pennsylvania.

The commonwealth is home to two of the most successful tax-credit scholarship programs in the nation: the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) and the Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) programs. Since 2001, these programs have pioneered the school choice movement by providing hundreds of thousands of scholarships to kids seeking educational alternatives.

Suffice it to say, EITC, OSTC, and FSTC belong together. In fact, federal lawmakers studied the Pennsylvania scholarship programs when crafting the legislation for the federal tax credit. Thanks to EITC and OSTC, Pennsylvania already has more than 250 scholarship-granting organizations, providing the necessary infrastructure to empower kids and families with the resources they need to afford the schools of their choice.

And these scholarships are so popular that there haven’t been enough to go around. Of the 170,000 applications received, EITC and OSTC awarded about 101,000 scholarships because of program caps. That means about 69,000 applicants were denied or waitlisted because some lawmakers in Harrisburg want to arbitrarily limit educational options for Pennsylvania kids.

Clearly, there is an unmet demand for these scholarships, and polling confirms this. Nearly 80 percent of Pennsylvanians support expanding EITC and OSTC, and seven out of ten Pennsylvanians want Shapiro to opt into the FSTC.

Failing to adopt FSTC is also a terrible financial decision. If only fifteen percent of Pennsylvania tax-filers donate, the commonwealth would garner nearly $500 million in scholarships, according to an estimate by Education Reform Now. Think about that: half a billion dollars in educational opportunity–without costing the state a single penny. If Shapiro doesn’t opt in, that money will go elsewhere.

Lawmakers must understand one political reality: School choice is inevitable. It’s a matter of when, not if. Each year, more families reject the one-size-fits-all model of education and demand more schooling options for their kids. Accordingly, the school choice movement continues to grow, as more states adopt or expand educational opportunities that drive funding more toward students and away from broken systems.

Governor Shapiro blew his chance to adopt transformational educational choice in 2023, but it’s never too late to do the right thing in 2026. He must opt into the FSTC and expand EITC and OSTC. But the clock is ticking, and Pennsylvania’s kids have already waited long enough.

Andrew Lewis is the president and CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation