School Choice in South Carolina

South Carolina's Education Scholarship Trust Fund (ESTF) provides $7,500 ESAs for eligible K-12 students. Created in 2023 and launched in 2024, the program covers tuition, textbooks, tutoring, technology, testing fees, educational therapies, transportation (up to $3,000), uniforms, and other DOE-approved expenses. Income limits phasing up from 300% to 500% FPL, with enrollment caps of 10,000 (2025-26) rising to at least 15,000 (2026-27).

South Carolina's Education Scholarship Trust Fund provides universal ESAs for K-12 students. Funds can be used for private school tuition, tutoring, educational technology, therapy services, and other approved educational expenses.

South Carolina provides dollar-for-dollar tax credits for donations to Exceptional SC that fund scholarships for students with disabilities. The program is capped at $12 million in credits, serving students with IEPs or documented learning-impacting conditions.

South Carolina's tax-credit scholarship program for students with exceptional needs. Created by Act 247 (2018), it provides scholarships up to $11,000 or the cost of tuition and qualified expenses (whichever is less) for students with disabilities to attend independent (nonpublic) schools. Funded through 100% tax credit donations to Scholarship Granting Organizations.

South Carolina's refundable tax credit for parents of children with exceptional needs. Provides a dollar-for-dollar refundable credit of the lesser of $11,000 or actual tuition and fees at an independent school. The $5 million annual cap for parental credits was reached on February 3, 2025. Only about 12% of students are eligible statewide, and roughly 1% of eligible students are funded.