After failing in her multiple attempts to block and remove Arizona\u2019s universal school choice opportunities for families, Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs is now looking to layer endless bureaucracy onto the state\u2019s thriving Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To justify tearing down the program, Hobbs disingenuously declared<\/a> that it \u201clacks accountability and transparency.\u201d Her proposed plan would require private schools to meet endless regulations and mirror public schools on a host of fronts. Essentially, it would strip away autonomy from private schools in the free market education landscape that Arizona families value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hobbs claimed<\/a>, \u201cArizonans deserve to know their money is being spent on educating students, not on handouts to unaccountable schools and unvetted vendors for luxury spending.\u201d Yet, no accountability of public school spending or vetting of public school vendors is occurring as Arizona public schools spend, on average, $15,000<\/a> per student. This is more than double the average $7,000<\/a> ESA amount provided per student accessing an alternative education avenue. Hobbs also seems to turn a blind eye to the staggering additional $800 million<\/a> pumped into Arizona public schools this school year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In reality, the ESA program provides enormous savings to the state, and the more families that use the program, the greater the savings will be. It\u2019s basic math \u2014 the cost of $7,000 per student through the ESA program versus $15,000 per student public school spending unquestionably helps, not hinders, the state\u2019s bottom line.<\/p>Keri D. Ingraham<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately, Arizona Senate Democratic Leader Mitzi Epstein backs Hobbs\u2019 tactics, stating<\/a>, \u201cThe Republican expansion of government to universal ESA vouchers has put our state\u2019s financial security at risk, and our students at risk without any safeguards.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n In reality, the ESA program provides enormous savings to the state, and the more families that use the program, the greater the savings will be. It\u2019s basic math \u2014 the cost of $7,000 per student through the ESA program versus $15,000 per student public school spending unquestionably helps, not hinders, the state\u2019s bottom line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But for Hobbs, ensuring high-quality education for the children of Arizona is not the priority, nor is it lower costs for the state. Instead, her priority is to pay dividends to the teachers unions who got her elected. The Arizona Federation of Teachers endorsed her, as did the Arizona Education Association (AEA) <\/a>after she \u201cstruck a \u2018deal\u2019 with the teachers union during her gubernatorial race.\u201d According to<\/a> the AEA Legislative Liaison Isela Blanc, \u201chaving Hobbs is the \u2018key\u2019 to the union\u2019s agenda.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Without question, the teachers unions controlled Hobbs since their endorsements were made back in 2022. That year, while campaigning for the governor\u2019s seat and working as Arizona\u2019s Secretary of State, Hobbs led the charge to collect signatures attempting to overturn Arizona\u2019s historical universal school choice bill signed into law by Gov. Doug Ducey. Her effort failed resoundingly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And upon becoming governor in 2023, Hobbs immediately sought to reverse the universal ESA bill. In her State of the State Address<\/a>, she attempted to invoke fear but claimed that the program \u201clacks accountability and will likely bankrupt this state.\u201d Instead of giving parents educational freedom to select the best learning option for their children, which also saves the state massive amounts of money, Hobbs insisted that the state must \u201ctruly invest in public schools.\u201d For Hobbs, the schools run by the teachers\u2019 unions need ever-increasing funds \u2014 regardless of any accountability for student learning or curriculum transparency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hobbs was unsuccessful in 2022, 2023, and will be again in 2024 in reversing ESAs in Arizona. Republican lawmakers hold majorities in both the state House and Senate and aren\u2019t falling for her latest tactic to undermine parental choice in the education of their children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n