The Bond County Board met Tuesday night and voted to place an advisory referendum on the March 17 primary ballot regarding the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit.
The action was taken at the request of Illinois Policy, a non-partisan advocacy organization which works to protect preserve the civil and personal liberties of Illinois citizens.
The county board motion was approved 3-0 by Jacob Rayl, Wes Pourchot and Jeff Rehkemper. Chris Timmermann and Bernard Myers were absent.
According to Illinois Policy, the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit has been passed into law and will be effective January 1, 2027. Dollar for dollar tax credits will be given to donors residing anywhere in the United States, up to $1,700.
Each state’s governor must opt-in by submitting to the Treasury Department in 2026 all qualifying Scholarship Granting Organizations. If a governor does not supply a list, money from Illinois donors will to students in complying states.
Dan Patlak from Illinois Policy said the non-binding referendum, if favored by voters, will show Governor Pritzker that Bond County supports offering financial sipper to students in Illinois.
The ballot question is “Should Illinois opt into a federal program that would provide public K-12, private school and homeschool students with privately-donated funds for academic needs, such as tutoring and test preparation, educational therapies for students with disabilities, tuition, books, exam fees and for other specified academic needs.”
There are no costs to states.
