You own a business, which means of course that you have an interest in a well-educated population. Given that, where would you prefer to send your tax dollars: to the general fund, where they will be swallowed up by a good deal of pork barrel spending, or to contribute to the education of a young person?

Business owners in at Pennsylvania have that opportunity. The Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program (EITC) lets businesses offset 75 percent of any of three state taxes with contributions to a Scholarship Organization, an Educational Improvement Organization, or a Pre-Kindergarten Scholarship Organization.

Writing in the April newsletter of the REACH Foundation, Andrew T. LeFevre comments on the EITC's popularity:

Since the inception of the EITC Program in 2001, more than 2,300 businesses have contributed over $260 million to participating organizations. Despite securing a $10 million increase to EITC funding for the current fiscal year, the $59 million in tax credits were once again gone in a matter of weeks--showing the demand for the program that has not been reached within the business community. The $36 million in tax credits available for scholarships are providing over 33,000 students the opportunity to attend a school that best meets their individual needs during this school year."