H.R. 5181 would reauthorize the Scholarship for Opportunity and Results Act, which authorizes funding for public and charter K-12 schools in the District of Columbia and scholarships to attend private K-12 schools for students who reside in the District of Columbia and meet additional criteria. The bill would authorize the appropriation of $60 million annually through 2032 and change the percentage of funds allocated for scholarships and support of schools. The bill also would amend the scholarship program to include pre-kindergarten students and allow funds to cover tutoring services, among other changes.
CBO expects that H.R. 5181 will be enacted by the end of 2025. Based on historical spending patterns, CBO estimates that implementing the bill would cost $300 million over the 2026-2030 period and an additional $120 million after 2030, assuming the appropriation of the authorized amounts.
The estimated budgetary effect of H.R. 5181 is shown in Table 1. The costs of the legislation primarily fall within budget function 500 (education, training, employment, and social services).
Table 1.
Estimated Increases in Spending Subject to Appropriation Under H.R. 5181
By Fiscal Year, Millions of Dollars
2026
2027
2028
2029
2030
2026-2030
Authorization
60
60
60
60
60
300
Estimated Outlays
60
60
60
60
60
300
The bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Garrett Quenneville. The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Director of Budget Analysis.
