Children's Promise Act

The Children’s Promise Act, passed during Mississippi's 2018 legislative session, lets businesses earn a dollar-for-dollar tax credit on up to 50% of their state taxes by donating to qualified Education Services Charitable Organizations (ESCO). Hartfield is already qualified ESCO.

For 2026, the cap for nonprofits like ours is $9 million, with each organization eligible to receive up to 4.5% of that total ($405,000). Once the statewide cap is reached, no further applications can be approved for the remainder of the year. Each year, this cap is typically reached within minutes of the New Year, benefiting schools like Hartfield tremendously. We are more than happy to submit the application form on your behalf. 

To learn how to participate in this program, please see the details below.

*The information on this page is for general purposes only and is not tax advice. Please consult a tax professional for guidance on your specific tax situation.*

Info for Businesses:

• Who can Apply for an Allocation of Credit: Business Taxpayers (Corporations, Partnerships, Limited Liability Companies, and Sole Proprietorships)
• Tax-Types that Credit can be used against: Income Tax (50% of tax liability), Insurance Premium Tax (50% of tax liability), Insurance Premium Retaliatory Tax (50% of tax liability), Ad Valorem Tax (for entities not operating as a corporation, 50% of real property tax liability)
• Carry Forward: 5 years
• Other Limitations: Contribution cannot be used for other state charitable credits and cannot be used as a deduction for state income tax purposes

If you are interested in donating to Hartfield using the Children's Promise Act, please contact our Director of Community Development, Brittany Odom | bodom@hartfield.org |
(769)524-4014

The Process:

• Submit the form at 8:00 am on January 5, 2026. (To streamline the process, Hartfield prefers to file this information on your behalf).
• Once submitted, the Mississippi Department of Revenue will respond with an approval or denial letter to the business during the month of January.
• If the Mississippi Department of Revenue approves an application, the taxpayer must make the contribution and send the verification of the contribution to the Mississippi Department of Revenue within sixty (60) days from the date the approval was granted.
• If the contribution is not made within sixty (60) days, the tax credit allocation will be canceled by the Mississippi Department of Revenue and those funds will be available for other applicants to use.