Before Treasury published its proposed rules for the federal scholarship tax credit, Agudath Israel of America was in the room.
Agudah's own account describes an invitation-only Treasury preview. Pictured: Rabbi A.D. Motzen, who now runs Agudah's Washington office, with Kevin Salinger, Treasury's deputy assistant secretary for tax policy. Also there: Greg Dolan of the Education Department, and Agudah's Rabbi Yitz Frank (Ohio), Rabbi Avi Schnall and Rabbi Shlomo Soroka (Illinois). Agudah's page carries no date. Yeshiva World News covered the preview on June 10, 2026.
What the rules say
The proposed rule came out October 1, K-12 Dive reported. The main points:
States may not limit which kinds of schools or expenses scholarships can cover.
There is no cap on scholarship size, per Yeshiva World News.
Unused credits carry forward five years.
Tutoring standards are left undefined.
Public comments close December 1. A public hearing is set for December 15.
The critics
Rachel Laser of Americans United, the NEA, Rep. Bobby Scott and Jessica Levin of Public Funds Public Schools all attacked the rule. Levin's point was specific: if states can't add safeguards, nobody is positioned to stop fraud.
That argument will land in frum communities that have seen federal school-program fraud prosecuted before, including E-Rate cases in Rockland County.
The other side
Agudah has framed the credit as tuition relief for families who already pay taxes for public schools they don't use. One estimate cited in Yeshiva World News put new scholarship money at $24 billion a year nationally.
How we reported this: based on Agudath Israel's release, Yeshiva World News and K-12 Dive. We will ask Treasury who else received the preview. Tips: [email protected].