Governor Katie Hobbs launched new criticisms against the Empowerment Savings Accounts (ESA) program, the school choice initiative allowing all Arizona families to direct education spending to charter or private schools, calling ESAs “unsustainable” and “unaccountable” after reporting the program is estimated to cause a shortfall in the Arizona General Fund.
Total costs for the program are estimated to be $943 million, according to the governor. This will leave the general fund with a potential shortfall of $319.8 million. Revenues for the general fund are estimated to be $17.9 billion.
The governor claimed the program increases costs because “more than 50% of ESA voucher funding represents” students previously outside of the public education system, including those “previously enrolled in private school, home schooling,” or attending a “non-state aid” school. In the same press release, Hobbs declared the ESA program is “unsustainable,” and charged that ESA vouchers “do not save taxpayer money” or “provide a better education for Arizona students.” She warned that the program could “bankrupt our state” if left unchecked.
While Hobbs’ press release questioned the methodology used by the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) when formulating its estimate, Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne noted his agency calculated a number “only 0.008 percent” different from the $943 million figure.
In a statement responding to Hobbs’ claims, the Republican head of the ADE said Hobbs knew the estimated cost of the program and the methodology used to reach it on May 31. He then criticized the governor for appearing to question the integrity of the government agency.
“The projections we released are, ironically, almost exactly the same as those in the governor’s memo,” said Horne. “There is a difference of only .008 percent between their numbers and ours. Questioning our methodology and our commitment to integrity in this process is unfair and unnecessary.” He also noted that the ADE held a press conference “where all aspects of these estimates, including the methodology, were thoroughly discussed and scrutinized by members of the news media.” This, Horne said, “contradicts the contention that ADE was anything less than transparent in this process.”
Horne acknowledged “the law was not strictly followed” under his “Democrat predecessor.”
“One of my first acts when I took office was to hire John Ward from the Arizona Auditor General as the internal auditor for the Department of Education,” said Horne. “He is now the director of the ESA program, and he is as committed as I am to making sure the law is strictly enforced and every penny is spent on valid educational purposes.”
The Arizona Sun Times contacted Hobbs to ask whether the governor was aware of the ADE estimate and methodology, and to determine whether Hobbs believes students who were previously home schooled or attended private school should be ineligible for the ESA program, but did not receive a response before press time.
The program continues to grow in popularity, with more than 60,000 students now participating, according to The Center Square. That outlet noted, “Even at nearly $1 billion, the program costs a small fraction of Arizona’s public school budget of $8.5 billion. Federal, state and local spending on public schools amounts to more than $14 billion.”
On the day Hobbs levied her criticisms, ESA program director Christine Accurso happened to resign. In a statement to the press, Accurso said she “achieved much of what I set out to accomplished” and was seeking “opportunities to engage citizens, especially parents, to fight for school choice and other issues they believe in.”
Horne told Fox 10 Phoenix that Accurso “came on to clean up the mess that was left by the prior administration” and “feels that’s been accomplished and it’s time for her to move on to other things.”
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes warned Arizona families considering the ESA program this week, claiming they could encounter unscrupulous vendors, discrimination against disabilities, or even scams after leaving the public school system.
Horne again stressed his work to improve the program and said he is “insisting that every law is strictly followed and that every penny of these funds is used for valid educational purposes.”
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Tom Pappert is a reporter for The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Tom on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
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I personally question the integrity of those applying for ESA funds. How many of those people applying for ESA funds don’t even live in Arizona, or maybe not even the United States? People can easily take advantage of a government system. I am certain there are plenty of fraudulent claims submitted for ESA funds. After all, most states don’t offer any money for homeschooling. How can Arizona taxpayers be certain that the money is staying with Arizona families, and how can we be certain the money isn’t being squandered or doled out to family and friends who pretend to be provide educational sevices in exchange of funds with one another? There needs to be much more oversight including random home visits and state testing requirements.