Illinois bishops encourage support for campaign for school tax credits

The Illinois state government moved into early July without a budget and an apparent impasse between Gov. Bruce Rauner and Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, but Catholic leaders are moving forward with plans to push for more aid for Catholic, private and public school parents.

Archbishop Cupich wrote a letter that was distributed to parishioners on June 19 urging then to contact their legislators to express their support of the campaign, which aims to increase the education expenses tax credit for parents with children enrolled in grades K-12 to $1,000 from the current $500 and to create a tax credit for donors to scholarship programs for Catholic and other schools.

In his letter, Archbishop Cupich said that Catholic schools are important to children, families, the Catholic community and society as a whole.

“They are a place of hope and learning and a beacon of safety in our communities,” he wrote. Our schools are also a key ministry of our Catholic faith. Our teachers not only instruct our students about math, science, history, technology, and literature, but also about our Catholic values: dignity of the human person from conception to natural death, care for the poor and vulnerable, participation in the family and community, care for God’s creation, the dignity of work, and solidarity as one human family. Their focus on academic excellence results in a graduation rate of 98 percent for our high school seniors. Of those graduating seniors, 95 percent go on to attend college.”

The Illinois Kids Campaign is a coalition of organizations working to increase funding for both public and private schools, in which the Catholic Conference is a “leading partner,” according to the archbishop’s letter.

Several other Illinois bishops also issued letters, while others placed ads designed by the Catholic conference in their bulletins.

Bob Gilligan, executive director of the Catholic Conference, said supporters had originally hoped to make progress before the end of the spring legislative session. When the new fiscal year started July 1 without a state budget, nothing was settled, but Gilligan said he expects to garner some support for the proposal in the coming months.

Some legislators are likely to back it if only because it will be something they can offer to taxpayers at a time when state income taxes are likely to rise to help cover the state’s deficit.

“Everyone knows we have to do something with revenue,” Gilligan said. “This will be something that they can give back.”

More information about how to contact state representatives can be found at www.ilcatholic.org, or by calling the Catholic Conference at 312-368-1066.