Sponsors (3)
I'll give you the short version of this bill.
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Creates a new Military Education Savings Account program to provide federally funded education savings accounts for eligible military dependent children, with the Department of Education (in consultation with Defense) establishing accounts, eligibility, approved uses, provider approval, fraud protections, taxation rules, and limits on admin costs. Authorizes $1.2 billion for fiscal year 2026 for these accounts and requires future annual authorizations to grow with the chained Consumer Price Index (C-CPI-U).
Establishes a new program called "Military Education Savings Accounts" and directs the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, to set up accounts and deposit funds into them at a parent’s request. It also requires the Secretary to create a procedure allowing parents to use account funds for the child’s educational expenses.
Requires parents to submit an application (using a standardized form) to participate; applications accepted year-round and must be approved expeditiously. The Secretary must make the form available in written and electronic formats and on a public website.
Approves an application only if funds are available, the child is an eligible military dependent child, and the parent enters into a written agreement promising (i) to provide instruction at minimum in reading, language, mathematics, science, and social studies; (ii) not to enroll the child full-time in a public elementary or secondary school while in the program; (iii) to use funds only for authorized purposes; and (iv) to comply with all other section requirements.
The Secretary must establish automatic renewal for previously established accounts unless the parent declines renewal or the account was used for fraud or not in accordance with the section.
If appropriated funds are insufficient to fund all approved applications in a school year, the Secretary must first renew and fully fund existing accounts, and if funds remain, run a lottery to select new accounts to establish using remaining funds.
Primary beneficiaries are eligible military dependent children and their families, who would receive federally funded education savings accounts to pay for approved education expenses. The Department of Education (with consultation from the Department of Defense) would incur the administrative responsibility to create, run, and oversee the program, including developing application processes, approving providers, setting allowable uses, enforcing fraud protections, and defining tax treatment for accounts. Educational providers that choose to accept account funds would need to meet approval standards and comply with oversight rules. The authorized funding ($1.2 billion for FY2026) and automatic CPI indexing create a predictable funding stream if appropriations follow, but implementation details (deposit size per child, exact allowable uses, and enforcement mechanisms) will determine budgetary outlays, program reach, and effects on public school enrollment and local education funding. Administrative costs are limited to 5% of program funds, which constrains overhead but still requires federal staffing and systems. Possible indirect impacts include shifts in demand toward approved nonpublic education providers and debates over public-school funding consequences; the legislation also creates federal obligations and oversight duties that could require additional Department of Education resources and coordination with DoD.
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Introduced April 1, 2025 by Rafael Edward Cruz · Last progress April 1, 2025
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Introduced in Senate