Politico’s Morning Education reports on the Network for Public Education campaign against tax deductions for vouchers:

VOUCHER ADVERSARIES SHOWER IRS WITH THANKS: Public education and anti-voucher advocates are inundating the IRS with thank yous for a proposed rule seeking to limit the federal deductibility of contributions to charitable organizations. The rare and profuse gratitude for the usually choice-friendly Trump administration comes as the public comment period on the rule is set to close Thursday.

— Many of the comments use language promoted by organizations like the Network for Public Education, thanking the IRS for proposing the end of a “tax shelter that allows taxpayers to turn a profit when they fund private schools through state tuition tax credit programs. … Please stay the course and make sure that tax accountants, private schools, and others can no longer exploit the federal charitable deduction to promote voucher tax credits.” Read the comments here.

— The background: Eighteen states have tax credit scholarship programs that award individuals or businesses a full or partial tax credit when they donate to organizations that grant private school scholarships. About a dozen of them issue full tax credits to donors and when combined with the federal deduction, the tax benefits can exceed the size of the donation. The proposed rule, aimed at preventing efforts by some blue states to get around a new limit on state and local tax deductions, would prevent donors who contribute to state tax credit scholarship programs from reaping such a benefit.

— School choice advocates have also flooded the IRS with comments, concerned the rule would make taxpayers less likely to donate to organizations that award private school scholarships because of the reduced tax benefit. Advocates say that would ultimately hurt students, many of whom come from low-income families.

— In the effort to counter those voices, the National Coalition for Public Education is urging its supporters to speak out, noting “the IRS is already facing extreme pressure by pro-privatization entities and members of Congress.”