In this past legislative session, Mississippi Center for Public Policy championed groundbreaking foster care reform that was signed into law.

The new law provides a:

• $1,000, dollar-for-dollar individual tax credit for donations to organizations that assist children who are either already in foster care or at high risk of entering the state’s foster care system.
• $800 tax credit for donations to nonprofits who work with disabled children and low-income families.

The purpose of the law is to empower the private sector to better address the systemic problems of family breakdown and poverty in Mississippi — problems too complex for any one agency to handle. In addition, research shows that charitable donations to nonprofits generate a much better return than direct government investments.

The law is based on a successful model first passed by Arizona. Mississippi is just the second state to enact such legislation.

Since the law’s passage, Jameson Taylor, vice president of policy at MCPP, has been meeting with nonprofits and other stakeholders committed to turning Mississippi’s ailing foster care system around. There is also interest in adding a corporate income tax credit to the program.

Most recently, Taylor explained the significance of the new policy at a recent Americans for Tax Reform panel in Alaska.