Arkansas’ Educational Freedom Account Rules: What Happened and What Comes Next

Home School,

Over the past several months, Arkansas homeschool families have raised serious concerns about new rules affecting homeschoolers participating in the state’s Educational Freedom Account (EFA) program.

Here is a brief recap of how we got to where we are today and where things may go from here.

2023 – 2025: From Law to Rulemaking

Lawmakers created the EFA program 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, and many homeschool families have benefited from it.

Last year, the Arkansas Legislature passed S.B. 625 reducing EFA vendor fees and placing some spending restrictions on extracurricular activities, PE courses, fine arts, music, STEM, and field trips.

These are areas where homeschoolers have experienced significant price increases since the start of the EFA program. Cutting vendor fees and capping certain costs encourages educational providers to keep their prices down.

We were able to work with our friends at the Arkansas Department of Education and the governor’s office to amend S.B. 625 to be sure it restricts fees without placing any undue burdens on homeschoolers.

However, later in 2025, the Arkansas Department of Education began developing new administrative rules for the EFA program. Early proposals included significant restrictions on how EFA funds could be used — especially when it came to team sports.

December of 2025: Concerns Arise Over Team Sports Restrictions in New Rules

By December, homeschool families and organizations began voicing concerns about proposals that would prohibit EFA spending on many team sports.

Family Council and the Education Alliance urged state officials to reconsider these restrictions.

Despite these concerns, state officials signaled in January that they did not intend to change course.

2026: Proposal Moves Forward

In the weeks that followed, the Department of Education amended its proposed restrictions, but concerns remained. By March, it was clear the rules could prevent homeschool students from using EFA funds for extracurriculars that limit participation based on tryouts or ability — even though public schools continue to fund team sports with state dollars.

Family Council and the Education Alliance continued to communicate with homeschoolers and policymakers, emphasizing that the proposed rules would limit educational choice and disproportionately affect homeschool families.

April 9: State Board of Education Approves New Rules

On April 9, the State Board of Education approved a new set of EFA rules.

Among other things, these revised rules:

  • Prohibit using EFA funds for team sports that require tryouts or limit participation based on ability
  • Establish new categories and restrictions on allowable educational expenses
  • Reduce the maximum balance families can carry in their EFA accounts.

These changes mark a significant shift in how homeschool families may use EFA funds, and they go beyond the reasonable restrictions the Arkansas Legislature approved last year.

What Happens Next

The rules have now been sent to the Arkansas Legislature for review, where a subcommittee of either the Joint Budget Committee or the Arkansas Legislative Council will review them and make a final recommendation on whether to approve or reject the rules.

That means there is still an opportunity for legislators to address concerns raised by homeschool families.

We are urging homeschoolers across the state to call the Arkansas House of Representatives and Arkansas Senate, and ask their lawmakers to listen to Arkansas’ homeschool families.

You can call 501-682-2902 to leave a message asking your state senator to oppose these measures.

You can call 501-682-6211 to leave a message asking your state representative to oppose these measures.

You can read our public comments on the proposed rules here.

You can read our entire policy brief about the new rules here.

Family Council and the Education Alliance continue to monitor this process as it moves forward.

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

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One Bad Homeschool Measure Fails at Capitol

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On Wednesday, one of the bad homeschool measures at the Arkansas Capitol failed in committee.

Lawmakers created the Educational Freedom Account (EFA) program 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.

But this year, lawmakers filed H.R. 1008 and S.R. 16 reducing EFA funding for homeschoolers and imposing new restrictions under the EFA program.

These proposed laws are homeschool control measures dressed up as accountability measures. They turn educational freedom into a state compliance program.

On Wednesday, H.R. 1008 failed in the House Rules Committee. After testimony from the measure’s sponsor and questions and answers from the lawmakers, the proposal failed to receive a “Do Pass” motion from the committee members.

This is good news, but S.R. 16 is still in play at the Capitol.

Lawmakers also will review new rules from the Department of Education governing EFA accounts at some point in the near future.

The rules would prohibit Educational Freedom Account spending on team sports that require tryouts or that limit participation based on ability. That means that a homeschool student who wants to play basketball for a local school could not pay for athletic expenses with EFA money even though public schools pay for team sports with state money.

Arkansas law clearly caps extracurricular spending at 25% of a student’s total EFA funding, which means no more than one-fourth of a student’s EFA money can go toward team sports and extracurricular activities. The new rules go farther by prohibiting all spending on team sports that require tryouts.

Family Council and the Education Alliance are still urging homeschoolers to contact their lawmakers and ask them to oppose S.R. 16 and the new EFA rules from the Arkansas Department of Education.

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

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Unpacking EFA Rules, Homeschool Measures at the Capitol

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We are urging homeschoolers across the state to call the Arkansas House of Representatives and Arkansas Senate, and ask their lawmakers to oppose H.R. 1008, S.R. 16, and a new set of Educational Freedom Account rules from the Arkansas Department of Education.

Call your senator: You can call 501-682-2902 between 8:00 A.M. and 5:00 P.M. to leave a message asking your state senator to oppose these measures.

Call your representative: You can call 501-682-6211 between 8:00 A.M. and 5:00 P.M. to leave a message asking your state representative to oppose these measures.

Here is more information about how these measures would affect homeschoolers.

H.R. 1008 and S.R. 16 Restrict Homeschoolers Under EFA Program

H.R. 1008 and S.R. 16 would restrict homeschoolers participating in the Educational Freedom Account (EFA) program.

Lawmakers created the EFA program 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, and many homeschool families have benefited from it.

H.R. 1008 and S.R. 16 would significantly reduce EFA funding for homeschoolers and implement mandatory assessment scores for students participating in the EFA program.

It would also expand the list of mandatory reporters to include education service providers who work with homeschoolers.

These proposed laws are homeschool control measures dressed up as accountability measures. They turn educational freedom into a state compliance program. The State is using EFA dollars as a way to standardize and regulate homeschooling rather than provide parents the freedom to tailor the education that is best for their children.

You can read our entire policy brief about these laws here.

The 2026 Educational Freedom Account Rules Stop Homeschoolers from Using EFA Money for Certain Team Sports

New rules from the Department of Education would prohibit Educational Freedom Account spending on team sports that require tryouts or that limit participation based on ability. That means that a homeschool student who wants to play basketball for a local school could not pay for athletic expenses with EFA money even though public schools pay for team sports with state money.

Arkansas law clearly caps extracurricular spending at 25% of a student’s total EFA funding, which means no more than one-fourth of a student’s EFA money can go toward team sports and extracurricular activities. The new rules go farther by prohibiting all spending on team sports that require tryouts.

The rules also limit EFA balances. Right now, EFA funds can roll over each year up to a maximum balance of $20,000. But the new rules set this limit at $8,500 or a lesser amount set by the Arkansas Legislature in a future session.

The proposed rules also set up a new framework differentiating between “core educational expenses” versus “qualifying expenses.”

Lawmakers could vote very soon on whether to approve the Department of Education’s new EFA rules.

You can read our entire policy brief about the new rules here.

Please contact your lawmakers, and ask them to oppose the bad homeschool laws H.R. 1008 and S.R. 16 and the Department of Education’s bad EFA rules.

You can call 501-682-2902 to leave a message asking your state senator to oppose these measures.

You can call 501-682-6211 to leave a message asking your state representative to oppose these measures.

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

READ MORE