Educational Freedom Funding Tops $128.5M for Second Half of 2025

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Arkansas invested more than $128.5 million in Educational Freedom Account funding during the second half of 2025, according to data on the state’s financial transparency website.

In 2023, lawmakers passed the LEARNS Act overhauling public education in Arkansas.

The Educational Freedom Accounts (EFAs) authorized under the LEARNS Act make it possible for students to use public dollars to pay for an education at a public or private school or through home schooling. Family Council and our homeschool division, the Education Alliance, were pleased to support this good law, because it expands educational opportunities for families.

State data shows from July 1 to December 31 of 2025, Arkansas spent $128,543,373 on Educational Freedom Accounts.

Of that money, approximately $126.7 million went to pay for students’ educations, and $1.8 million went to operating expenses under the program.

EFA spending has been a topic of conversation over the past month. In December Family Council and its homeschool division, the Education Alliance, submitted public comments asking the Arkansas Department of Education to rethink a set of proposed rules prohibiting EFA money from being used for team sports under the LEARNS Act.

The proposed rules said that registration fees, equipment, dues, and any costs associated with club and team sports could not be paid for with EFA funding.

Many homeschoolers expressed concerns that completely prohibiting EFA spending on team sports would be unfair and would fail to track with state law. However, despite opposition, the Department of Education has opted to move forward with implementing the restrictions at this time.

Since the LEARNS Act launched three years ago, thousands of students have taken advantage of school choice in Arkansas. Many families feel that public education has deteriorated over the years. For those families, programs like the LEARNS Act could empower them with real alternatives that help their children succeed. That is part of the reason Family Council has supported the LEARNS Act and the EFA program.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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State Department of Education Refuses to Listen to Homeschoolers on Proposed EFA Restrictions

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On Friday, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported that the State Department of Education plans to move forward with proposed rules prohibiting homeschoolers from using Educational Freedom Account (EFA) funding to pay for team sports under the LEARNS Act.

The decision comes despite public comments from more than 200 citizens who oppose the rules. Family Council and its homeschool division, the Education Alliance, were among those who submitted public comments against the proposed rules in December.

Lawmakers created the EFA program under the LEARNS Act in 2023, making it possible for Arkansas students to use public funds to pay for an education at a public or private school or at home. Thousands of students have taken advantage of school choice in Arkansas under this program.

Last year the Arkansas Legislature approved Act 920 by Sen. Breanne Davis (R — Russellville) and Rep. Keith Brooks (R — Little Rock) reducing EFA vendor fees and limiting EFA spending on extracurricular activities to 25%. That means a student who participates in the LEARNS Act cannot spend more than one-fourth of his or her EFA money on extracurricular activities.

Family Council supported Act 920 because homeschoolers participating in the EFA program have seen the price of extracurricular activities go up. Cutting vendor fees and capping certain costs will encourage providers to keep their prices down.

However, the Department of Education’s proposed rules go beyond what Act 920 allows. The proposed EFA rules completely prohibit any EFA spending on registration fees, equipment costs, dues, and any costs associated with club or team sports.

Act 920 simply caps spending in these areas at 25% of a student’s total EFA funding, but the Department of Education wants to prohibit spending on team and club sports altogether.

Besides failing to track with Act 920, many homeschoolers have also expressed concerns that completely prohibiting EFA spending on team sports is unfair because public schools fund team sports with state money.

If the Department of Education opts to move forward with these rules, the legislators on the Arkansas Legislative Council’s Administrative Rules and Regulations Subcommittee will have to approve them in February.

Family Council and the Education Alliance are urging all Arkansans to ask their lawmakers not to approve the Department of Education’s proposed Rules Governing the Arkansas Children’s Educational Freedom Account Program.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Arkansas Spent $9.3M+ on LEARNS Act EFAs in November

Education,

Family Council estimates the State of Arkansas spent nearly $9.4 million on LEARNS Act Educational Freedom Accounts (EFAs) last month, based on data from the state’s transparency website.

In November, Family Council reported that the State of Arkansas had invested more than $111.1 million in EFAs from July 1 through October 31.

Last week, the state’s transparency website revealed the figure had climbed to $120,517,891 as of the end of November — indicating Arkansas spent nearly $9.4 million on the program last month.

To date, administrative costs have accounted for $916,574 of the program’s spending. The rest has gone to pay for education expenses.

Last spring, the General Assembly budgeted nearly $187.5 million for the Educational Freedom Accounts for the 2025-2026 school year and placed $90 million in its Restricted Reserve Fund set aside for the program.

Since the LEARNS Act launched in 2023, thousands of students have taken advantage of school choice in Arkansas. Many families feel that public education has deteriorated over the years. For those families, programs like the LEARNS Act could empower them with real alternatives that help their children succeed. That is part of the reason Family Council has supported the LEARNS Act.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

READ MORE