Arizona Lawmakers, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne Push Back of Gov. Hobbs’ ‘Half Cocked Attempt to Destroy’ the ESA Program

Multiple Arizona lawmakers and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne have pushed back on the plan by Governor Katie Hobbs to place heavy restrictions on the state’s popular Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program.

Hobbs on Wednesday revealed her plan to place a series of new restrictions on the ESA program, including new state requirements for private school educators and schools, additional scrutiny for ESA contracts before funds are dispersed, a ban on “price gouging,” “minimum standards” for schools, which the state would set, and modified eligibility requirements for students, among other new requirements and reforms.

The governor, a frequent opponent of the state’s education choice program despite its soaring popularity among parents and students, accused the ESA program of lacking “accountability and credibility” and claimed her plan will institute “basic standards” for schools.

Arizona State Senator Jake Hoffman (R-Queen Creek) called Hobbs’ plan a “half cocked attempt to destroy an invaluable parental choice option via ‘death by a thousand cuts'” in a post on X, formerly Twitter, and promised the governor’s proposal will be dead on arrival when it reaches the Arizona State Legislature, vowing the Arizona Freedom Caucus “will make sure of it.”

Hoffman’s comments were shared on social media by State Representative Jacqueline Parker (R-Mesa), who added, “Nothing lacks more accountability [and] transparency than the government school system.”

Parker called ESAs “an extremely successful [and] equalizing solution,” adding, “of course democrats want to mess it up.”

Nothing lacks more accountability & transparency than the government school system. ESA’s are an extremely successful & equalizing solution, so of course democrats want to mess it up. 🤦🏻‍♀️ https://t.co/iZn9U0v23R

— Rep. Jacqueline Parker (@electjacqparker) January 3, 2024

Horne (pictured above) replied in a statement to KVOA, acknowledging his “job is to administer the ESA program in line with state law, and if changes are made, the Department of Education will follow them.” However, Horne told the outlet one of Hobbs’ proposals is “already in place,” referencing Hobbs’ demand that ESA purchases over $500 be manually reviewed.

“My office already reviews all expense requests regardless of amount, unlike the previous superintendent who approved many frivolous requests.” Horne added that he rejected “several thousand ESA applications” in 2023 due to “lack of adequate documentation,” and that his agency “suspended almost 2,200 accounts totaling $21 million because the student was enrolled in a public school” and rejected “more than 12,000 ESA purchase order requests.”

Arizona State House Speaker Ben Toma (R-Peoria) recently promised voters that the state’s Republican lawmakers would not relent on their support for ESAs, calling critics of the program “disingenuous.”

Toma said in August that ESAs may be “a partisan issue in this building and this Capitol complex, but it is not a partisan issue largely with parents. Democrat parents want school choice overwhelmingly just like Republican parents and independent parents. So, I think it’s unfair to say this is a partisan issue outside of this place because it’s not. Parents want choice.”

– – –

Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Tom Horne” by Tom Horne for Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction.