Parity vouchers and high school book vouchers, more resources for research

A contribution of up to 1,500 euro for attendance at a parish school. The 'voucher' is valid for 2026 and is granted to families with an Isee not exceeding 30,000 euro. It will be recognised by MIM, on the basis of implementation methods to be agreed in a decree with the MEF, and will be used to support the payment of fees for middle school and the first two years of high school. The measure of the contribution will be determined according to scales inversely proportional to income situation. There are EUR 20 million on the pot to achieve this.

Still on the subject of paritarian schools, there is also the exemption from the payment of Imu for educational institutions that provide their services to families by charging a fee lower than the average student cost.

In the Budget Committee of the Chamber of Deputies, another amendment was also approved that creates a fund of 20 million euro as of 2026, to be distributed among municipalities, with the aim of helping families in the purchase of school books. The contribution may go to households with an Isee up to 30,000 euro, and will be used for books, including digital ones, indicated in the adoption lists, intended for high schools. Another constraint is that these families must not benefit from other forms of support for the same purpose.

Under the heading of education, these are the main innovations introduced during the gruelling process in the Senate committee. Alongside a series of other micro-measures. Take the allocation of EUR 2 million for 2026 for the extension of the Educare al rispetto-Sport e Salute project to prevent bullying and cyberbullying in secondary schools. The same amount will then go to Indire next year and the year after to continue training activities against gender-based violence. Not forgetting either the EUR 150,000 for a regional teaching workshop for students in Friuli Venezia Giulia and focusing on the earthquake in Friuli on 6 May 1976, or the EUR 100,000 for experimental courses on first aid techniques aimed at students over 18 years of age and middle and high school motor and sports science teachers.

Turning to universities, the most economically and politically relevant measure certainly concerns housing. In Palazzo Madama, the Budget law has embarked on the facility entrusted to Cdp or one of its associated companies to find half of the 60,000 new beds financed by the NRP, i.e. those 30,000 that will be ready after 15 July 2026. A choice that, remaining with the universities, is in addition to the 3 million more refinancing for 2026 of Erasmus in Italy (on which see yesterday's Il Sole 24 Ore) and the 50 million over two years for the stabilisation of 1,618 type A researchers (i.e. with no career prospects) who have been in service in state universities for at least two years, with a 50% reserve of slots for personnel recruited on projects of the Recovery and Resilience Plan. Stabilisations, half of which will have to be financed by the universities.