Louisiana Can Fully Fund LA GATOR and Here’s How—It’s a Matter of Priorities

Louisiana lawmakers debating whether to fully fund the LA GATOR education savings account program should begin with a simple fact: voters want the option funded, andthe money is available. The real issue is not affordability—it is whether state leaders are willing to prioritize students and families over outdated funding structures and political spending habits.

Recent data show three realities converging at once:

	Louisiana voters and families strongly support expanded education choice.
	Traditional public school enrollment is declining sharply.
	The state has ample dollars—including unused education funds—to fully fund LA GATOR.

Public Demand Is Clear

LA GATOR exists because thousands of Louisiana families want access to education options beyond the traditional assigned public school model. Parents are increasingly seeking private schools, charter schools, homeschooling, microschools, and hybrid models that better fit their children’s needs. 

That desire for choice mirrors broader voter sentiment. Louisiana families increasingly support giving parents more control over education dollars and access to alternatives when the assigned system is not meeting expectations. In a poll of Louisiana voters conducted in late February, 65% indicated support for fully funding LA GATOR—including 72% of Republicans, 59% of Independents, and 62% of Democrats. 

In this year’s two-week LA GATOR application cycle, the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) reported that families submitted 17,387 eligible applications for students to access the program for the 2026-2027 school year. Of that total, 87% of students are in households 250% or below the federal poverty level and over 1,000 have disabilities. The applications span the entire state, not only coming from New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Shreveport, but also Alexandria, Lake Charles, Hammond, Monroe, Opelousas, and Winnsboro. 

Simply put: LA GATOR is popular because it empowers families, and families are making it known that they need more options for their children’s education. They need their elected representatives to respond.

Public School Enrollment Is Falling

At the same time demand for alternatives is rising, demand for traditional public education is declining. According to recent reporting, Louisiana public schools have lost roughly 60,000 students over the last decade, and enrollment continues to fall. This is not a temporary fluctuation. It is a structural shift.

Families are voting with their feet. And this trend is one of the most important facts in the entire funding debate.

Fewer students in the traditional system should eventually mean fewer dollars needed to sustain that system at current levels. Yet Louisiana continues to increase public education spending and grow administrative bureaucracy while serving fewer students.

For several years, the Pelican Institute has reported that the Minimum Foundation Program (MFP), the funding formula the state uses to support local school systems, is growing as student enrollment is declining. The chart above from Pelican’s Citizens’ Guide to the Budget shows that trend from fiscal years 2015 to 2025 based on information obtained earlier this year from the LDOE and the state Division of Administration. The MFP is not the only source of state funding for public education. At least $6.6 million in additional state funds are allocated outside the MFP for public schools and students, including money for tutoring, differentiated compensation of teachers, apprenticeships and internships, agriculture programming, and cameras in special education classrooms.

Perhaps one reason why public schools continue to ask for more state money is to fund their growing number of administrators and administrative support staff. As the number of students they are serving declines, schools are expanding district-level bureaucracy.

Source: Louisiana Department of Education, Annual Financial & Statistical Reports

Unused Education Dollars

Several years of declining enrollment has meant that public schools have not used the full allocation of funding provided by the state through the Minimum Foundation Program (MFP) program. According to the LDOE, the amount of unused money has totaled nearly $200 million in recent years.

What happens to this unused money? It reverts back to the state, becomes part of the general fund balance, loses its MFP designation, and becomes available for other use, most often via supplemental appropriation

MFP Appropriation → Fewer Students/Lower Need → Unspent Balance → Reverts to State General Fund → Available for Reappropriation

While this isn’t enough to fund the entire LA GATOR need, it’s a decent down payment—money that was arguably first intended to support students that is now available to follow them to the school or educational program that best fits their needs. 

In recent legislative hearings and state board of education meetings, state superintendent of education Cade Brumley confirmed that, once again, public school enrollment is down this year by about 13,000 students, meaning schools will not use their entire MFP allocation. leaving about $42 million unspent that will revert back to the state. At the same time, BESE has proposed an increase in funding to the MFP—roughly $30 million—for “mandated costs.” 

Louisiana Has the Money

Claims that Louisiana cannot afford LA GATOR are difficult to reconcile with the state’s fiscal picture—not only in light of unused education dollars, but also given the state’s overall budget and fiscal and economic outlook.

Thanks to smart fiscal reforms and rapid economic development, state revenues have repeatedly exceeded expectations in recent years, generating surpluses and extra discretionary dollars. Lawmakers have a $577 million surplus left over from the prior fiscal year ($144 million must be deposited in the state’s “rainy day” fund and $144 million put toward retirement debt) and an extra $292 million in unspent cash from the current budget year.

The House recently passed House Bill 1, containing the state’s operating budget for fiscal year 2026-2027. It preserves Governor Landry’s recommended funding level of $87 million for LA GATOR, which would nearly double current program funding but still leave approximately 5,200 eligible children unserved. It also includes $77.5 million to fund lawmakers’ favored local projects and non-governmental organizations. 

If Louisiana can continue adding money to a dwindling government-run school system and pet projects, it can fund children.

The Bottom Line

LA GATOR isn’t an added expense; it’s smarter deployment of existing dollars in accordance with the will of Louisiana’s people. Louisiana has the money to fully fund LA GATOR.

The real question for lawmakers is simple: Will they prioritize systems and the status quo—or students? Fully funding LA GATOR would send the right message: education funding should follow the child, empower parents, and create opportunity wherever families choose to learn.