Educational Freedom Funding Tops $128.5M for Second Half of 2025
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.
Texarkana Puts New Restrictions on Public Drinking in Entertainment District
News outlets report the Texarkana Board of Directors voted to place new restrictions on public drinking in the city’s “entertainment district” at its first meeting of 2026.
Act 812 of 2019 let cities create “entertainment districts” where alcohol can be carried and consumed publicly on streets and sidewalks. These districts can be either permanent or temporary under the law.
After Act 812’s passage, El Dorado and Texarkana were among the first cities to authorize public drinking under the law.
However, at its January 5 meeting, the Texarkana Board of Directors implemented new restrictions changing the entertainment district’s boundaries, requiring businesses in the district to close by midnight, and preventing people from bringing in alcohol from outside the district.
KSLA News quoted Kristen Schultz with the Texarkana Arkansas Police Department as saying, “We have had for one a lot of outside underage drinking come into the district. We have also had a lot of loitering and prowling in front of the businesses creating large crowds and often large disturbances among the patrons.”
Unfortunately, Texarkana is not the only city that has encountered serious problems from public drinking in its entertainment district.
In 2024, the El Dorado City Council voted unanimously to shut down its entertainment district due to ongoing problems with fighting, vandalism, and other disorderly behavior.
As we have said for years, public drinking is a scourge on the community.
It raises serious concerns about drunk driving and public safety.
Public drinking doesn’t attract new businesses, bolster the economy, or revitalize Main Street. It hurts neighborhoods and families. It simply does not belong in Arkansas’ communities.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.