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Chuck Essigs

AEL, Aggregate spending limit, Reginald Bolding, education, public education
Sep 15, 2022

Special session pushed to avoid over $1B in school funding cuts

Democrats and public school officials are again asking Gov. Doug Ducey to call a special legislative session to avoid over $1 billion in K-12 funding cuts this school year, months after Republicans used the promise of a special session as a carrot to bring Democrats on board with this year’s historic bipartisan budget. 

Jan 7, 2022

School funding a ticking time bomb

Arizona schools are counting down to a March 1 deadline for the Legislature to override a cap on spending or face not being able to spend $1.1 billion already approved for them. 

Mar 1, 2021

Report: State behind on #20×2020 pay raise promise

Average teacher salaries in Arizona have increased by 13.3% since fiscal year 2017, but that’s still shy of the 15% cumulative goal laid out for this point in Gov. Doug Ducey’s #20x2020 plan.

Mar 1, 2019

Revamp of special-ed funding formula goes nowhere

Arizona’s formula for funding special education will be at least 40 years old before it is adapted to reflect the effects of school choice.

Jan 11, 2019

Tax-hike plan from conservative changes school-funding debate

Pigs aren’t flying. But it’s probably worth another look out the window, just to check, now that a conservative Republican proposed raising taxes in Arizona.

Jan 7, 2019

Rural Republican proposes tax increase for public education

Republican Sen. Sylvia Allen wants voters to approve a sales tax hike to boost funding for K-12 schools and higher education.

Sep 28, 2018

Auditor: Laws need to change for effective charter school scrutiny

If lawmakers want quality audits of Arizona charter schools, they have to change the laws governing how charters operate, the state’s top auditor said.

Jun 1, 2018

Pima County officials see legal trouble in desegregation tax

Pima County officials say a new state law dictating how to collect taxes for desegregation funding in Tucson puts the county at legal risk.

From top left, Senate President Steve Yarbrough, Gov. Doug Ducey, House Speaker J.D. Mesnard, Senate Minority Leader Katie Hobbs, Red for Ed demonstrators, and House Minority Leader Rebecca Rios (Photos by Katie Campbell/Arizona Capitol Times)
May 29, 2018

The Breakdown: Session Wrap Edition

Our reporters sat down with Gov. Doug Ducey as well as Republican and Democratic leaders in both chambers to reflect on the last five months - and what this session's events may hold for the future.

A woman holds a sign that reads "Gov. Ducey... is this what you had in mind when you mandated the civics exam?". She joined thousands of protesters at Chase Field before marching to the Arizona Capitol on April 26. (Photo by Katie Campbell/Arizona Capitol Times)
May 25, 2018

School districts, lawmakers clash over teacher pay

Arizona lawmakers, roundly criticized this year over poorly funded public schools, want to make one thing clear: They’re not the ones responsible for giving teachers raises.

Gov. Doug Ducey announces a plan to give teachers a 20 percent raise over the next three fiscal years. (Photo by Katie Campbell/Arizona Capitol Times)
May 25, 2018

Agreement on school funding ends at whether more is needed

Arizona’s public education system could use more money– a point few argue against. The disagreement comes when elected officials and education advocates start talking about how to get there.

Apr 30, 2018

Budget includes property tax increase for some school districts

Homeowners in more than a dozen Arizona school districts will pay additional property taxes if GOP lawmakers approve a maneuver in Gov. Doug Ducey’s budget deal.

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