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Horne’s Voucher Claims
Debunked… Again
Budget Battles Brew: As the Arizona legislature locks into a stalemate around budget negotiations, Republican lawmakers are once again putting their heads in the sand and ignoring the runaway $1 billion ESA voucher fiasco [[link removed]] that is eating up the state budget. Legislators face a budget deficit likely to total hundreds of millions of dollars or more. As State Senator Priya Sundareshan (D-18) said this week, “It will be very difficult to make a budget work if we do not talk about the big elephant in the room, which is all the waste, fraud, and abuse in the ESA program.” It’s worth noting that $440 million currently sits unused [[link removed]] in ESA voucher accounts. Scooby Doo's Fred pulls a mask labeled [[link removed]]
Vouchers are a ‘Sacred Cow’ — Despite Fraud: State Representative Nancy Gutierrez (D-18) said her Republican colleagues will not consider even the barest reform proposals: “So far they will not discuss it. It is a sacred cow to Republicans. They say, ‘It’s off the table. We are not talking about the voucher program.’ We are going to have to make cuts to our budget just to make baseline bills, and we are just supposed to ignore a billion-dollar program with no oversight?”
The Spin Artists Spin Themselves in Knots: Over the past few weeks, voucher-pushing special interest groups have worked themselves into an absolute frenzy attempting (and failing) to discredit 12News’ investigative reports of massive fraud, waste, and abuse [[link removed]] in Arizona’s ESA voucher program – including Project 2025’s Heritage Foundation [[link removed]] , the Ducey apologists [[link removed]] at the “Common Sense Institute” (🙄), and State Superintendent Tom Horne [[link removed]] . (PS - Don’t miss the Goldwater Institute’s submission for funniest headline of the year: “ Arizona ESA Program Most Accountable, Successful in Government [[link removed]] ”! 😂)
However, this week Supt. Horne’s own team admitted that 12 News was accurate in its reporting [[link removed]] that 20% of ESA voucher parents had misspent $10 million in one year, after 12News identified significant flaws in an analysis touted by Horne’s AZ Dept. of Education two weeks ago.
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Horne’s Words Catch Up to Him: From 12News [[link removed]] ’ report: Supt. Horne recently attempted to prove that fraud is minuscule in the lightly regulated program. But after 12News interviewed the state official who oversaw the analysis last week, we were only left with bigger questions. Associate Superintendent Dr. Joseph Guzman acknowledged in the interview that he did not know why the department labeled hundreds of questionable expenditures as “allowed.” Horne had previously claimed Guzman's expertise qualified him to determine that the misspending rate was less than 2%. Horne also claimed the analysis proved “misspending” rates were less than 2% and potential “egregious fraud” was only 0.3%.
The full scope of misspending rates remains unknown. A risk-based randomized audit of 385,000 transactions last year found that 18,000 accounts (nearly 20% of total account holders) had at least one misspent transaction. It also showed 84,000 instances of misspending.
⭐ This Tuesday is Arizona Gives Day! [[link removed]] ⭐
Once a year, a special day is set aside to fundraise for nonprofits across Arizona.
We hope you will consider donating to Save Our Schools Arizona Network [[link removed]] to fuel grassroots efforts to protect public education through voter engagement, awareness campaigns, research, presentations, and so much more!
We have a lofty goal of raising $20,000 to sustain our work through 2026 —
please help us get there!
DONATE HERE [[link removed]]
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READ THE FULL WEEKLY EDUCATION REPORT HERE [[link removed]]
LEA EL SEMANARIO EN ESPAÑOL [[link removed]]
Initiative Updates
What a weekend!!! Our volunteers were EVERYWHERE, getting signatures at parades, community events, parks, and more!
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We are running full steam and we need EVERYONE to do their part to get this historic ballot initiative qualified to the ballot. Can you get 5, 10, or 15 signatures from friends, family, and neighbors? Please do, and do it soon!
❓ Depot List: Need petitions?? Ready to turn yours in? Head to a Depot or Recurring Event [[link removed]] !
👋 Petition Request Form: Can’t make it to a depot? No problem – fill out our request-for-petitions form, [[link removed]] and we will connect you locally with your closest Hub Captain — a local organizer who can get you petitions.
💥 Volunteer Resource Hub: Check out our Volunteer Hub [[link removed]] , which is your one-stop shop for all circulator trainings, FAQs, and more. Make sure to bookmark or save the link! 📌
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💥 Circulator Training: Protect Education will be conducting more circulator trainings THIS week. Whether you’ve collected thousands of signatures in the past or are brand new to circulating, this training will provide critical information to ensure the signatures you collect are valid! You can also watch the Training Video on your own! [[link removed]]
Tues, April 7 @ 5:30pm [[link removed]]
Thurs, April 9 @ 5:30pm [[link removed]]
SIGN UP HERE [[link removed]]
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Legislative Update
Now entering the Fog of Secrecy: With regularly scheduled committees wrapped for the year, the bulk of the Arizona Legislature’s work is shifting to happen behind the scenes. Their only constitutionally mandated duty is to pass a state budget, and unfortunately, that is largely negotiated behind closed doors with only certain lawmakers playing a role.
Vacations incoming?: Budget talks remain on hold, with Gov. Hobbs and Republican legislative leaders talking to each other primarily via media statements [[link removed]] . The next milestone in the process is likely the quarterly Finance Advisory Committee meeting on April 16. Several hundred bills also still await final votes (including 34 SOSAZ-tracked bills and 10 SOSAZ-tracked ballot referrals [[link removed]] ), but Republican legislative leaders can schedule those votes at any time between now and the end of session. Rumor has it that, with budget talks stalled and nothing else immediately pressing, Republican leaders will be scheduling multiple weeks of breaks for lawmakers, giving them time to campaign for their July primaries. While this is just a rumor so far, it already seems they’re slowing down: both chambers are taking Monday off.
READ THE FULL REPORT ON BILLS HERE [[link removed]]
🤓✅ Don’t miss the SOSAZ 2026 Bill Tracker [[link removed]] ! This live document contains full information about all bills SOSAZ supports or opposes in 2026 and gives you up-to-the-minute information on where these bills stand. Bookmark the Bill Tracker [[link removed]] to stay in the know.
Arizona’s Request to Speak (RTS) is an online tool that lets everyday citizens give Arizona state lawmakers our feedback on bills from the comfort of home – but you don’t actually have to speak! It’s an easy way to weigh in on state politics, stay informed on the bills that directly affect us, and make sure our elected officials honor the wishes of us, their constituents.
Need a Request to Speak account? Sign up here to have one created for you: Sign up here [[link removed]]
Join Us!
📚 Join Save Our Schools Arizona Network’s From Page to Power Book Club! Our next book is “Navigating School Board Politics” by Carrie Sampson. Pick up a copy at your favorite local bookseller. Then, join us (virtually) for a discussion to connect, learn, and meet new people.
Sun, April 19 from 3-4pm
REGISTER HERE [[link removed]]
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Subscribe to Substack!
[link removed] [[link removed]] Our newsletters don’t write themselves! Support our work by becoming a paid subscriber to Save Our Schools Arizona’s Substack [[link removed]] . A monthly or annual donation of any amount helps to keep the lights on at the Weekly Education Report so we can provide you with the latest news in education week after week.
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Contact Us
[email protected]
Save Our Schools Arizona
PO Box 28370
Tempe, AZ 85285
United States
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