Guest column by Lauren Gage
Director of Marketing and Outreach
Opportunity Scholarships of Nebraska
In the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 22, the Pharisees approach Jesus with what they think is a pretty clever question: “Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
Our Lord, aware of their intentions to trap him, points them to Caesar’s inscription on their coins and said, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.”
Archbishop Charles Chaput provides some insight on this topic: “Caesar does have rights. We owe civil authority our respect and appropriate obedience,” and further, “The nature of the Gospel forces the church as a community and the individual Catholic as a believer to actively engage the world. That means all of it – including its social, economic, and political structure.”
Practically, as Catholics we have a duty to study and know our faith, be politically engaged, follow just laws, be obedient to proper authority, and, yes, pay taxes.
If you’re anything like me, letting go of those hard-earned tax dollars can be hard. Sure, it takes tax dollars to make roads, keep us safe, and make the country run. But after we have our say in elections and advocacy, we have little control over how those tax dollars are spent.
Come January 1, 2027, Americans will have the opportunity to have a say in how their would-be tax dollars are spent – namely, to fund tuition scholarships for kids to attend the school of their parents’ choice.
Caesar, or in this case, the President and U.S. Congress, through the Education Freedom Tax Credit (EFTC), has said to Americans: “You can take part of what you owe the federal government in taxes and use it to help kids get a great education. You can send up to $1,700 of would-be tax dollars to a nonprofit dedicated to awarding scholarships to kids, especially kids who need it the most.”
Before us is an opportunity to engage the world and our nation’s political life while using God’s blessings to bless others. There is no doubt that by now you, the reader, are sold and want to know how you can take part. Opportunity Scholarships of Nebraska (OSN) is here to help!
OSN started in 2023 to help implement Nebraska’s school choice laws and deliver scholarships to Nebraska kids. Those scholarships were stripped away by special interest groups, so the need for education freedom is greater than ever. The Education Freedom Tax Credit offers hope for families choosing the many wonderful Catholic schools across the state.
OSN proudly partners with Catholic schools in all three dioceses in Nebraska, Lutheran schools, and many other independent nonpublic schools across the state to deliver tuition scholarships to kids and families. As a local nonprofit organization with close ties to parishes and schools right here in Nebraska, we are passionate about this important work and committed to making the EFTC benefit kids and families.
Here’s how the EFTC will work:
A taxpayer will make a contribution of up to $1,700 to Opportunity Scholarships of Nebraska (OSN), a scholarship granting organization. That contribution can be with cash, check, credit card, or ACH payment. OSN will have an easy-to-use online platform where you can make a contribution and even designate your contribution to help kids who choose the school that means the most to you. Anyone with federal tax liability can make a contribution to OSN, even if they live outside of Nebraska.
OSN will give each contributor the documentation they need to claim a dollar-for-dollar tax credit on their federal income tax return. When you make a contribution in the tax year 2027 (from January 1 to December 31), you will claim the credit when you file your 2027 taxes, likely in the Spring of 2028. OSN will work with the IRS to ensure that if you’ve made a qualified contribution, your tax credit will be honored.
Nebraska kids will be awarded scholarships, thanks to your contributions! OSN will take funds given through tax credit eligible contributions and use those funds to award tuition scholarships to qualified students for them to attend the private school of their choice. We hope to have scholarships available for the fall of 2027. But we need contributions coming in the first half of the year to do that!
With only four months to go until the start of 2027, you might wonder how you can prepare to participate in this great opportunity. Here are a few ideas:
Budget and plan for your contribution. Taxpayers have to actually give a contribution to a scholarship granting organization like OSN upfront and claim the tax credit later. So you might want to start saving now to give that contribution. But remember – you’ll get that contribution back when you claim the credit. The credit will offset your liability dollar-for-dollar, so as long as you have a liability equal to or greater than the amount of your contribution, your tax bill will decrease or your refund will increase by your contribution amount.
Tell your friends! To make a great impact on Nebraska kids, we need a high level of participation in the program. But a little evangelization can go a long way. If just 1% of Nebraskans who file a federal tax return give a $1,700 contribution, that means nearly $5 million in tuition scholarships. If 3% participate, that means over $14 million.
You may have more questions, and the staff at OSN can’t wait to answer them. For more information and to sign up for important updates, visit nebraskaopportunity.org/giving. You can also contact our office at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 402.205.7047.
