By Staff Reporter |
Gov. Katie Hobbs is looking to spend as much of the federal COVID-19 relief funds as possible before Election Day and the December spending deadline.
On Tuesday, Hobbs announced the allocation of more than $16.4 million to Arizona’s three public universities.
Arizona State University will receive more than $8 million; Northern Arizona University will receive more than $2.6 million; and the University of Arizona will receive more than $5.7 million split between its main campus and its health sciences center.
The $16.4 million comes from the $4.2 billion in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds given to the state. The deadline to obligate ARPA funds passed on Dec. 31, 2024, and the deadline to spend those funds is coming up on Dec. 31, 2026.
Legal forms of obligation include formal commitments through contracts, interagency agreements such as a memorandum of understanding, purchase orders for goods or services, or subawards.
Moving ARPA funds into a general fund without establishing an obligation doesn’t qualify, however.
During Hobbs’ first year in office, she clawed back more than $210 million in ARPA funds issued by her predecessor, Gov. Doug Ducey. The Hobbs administration alleged the funds were illegally issued because the recipients weren’t subjected to a competitive bidding process. Sean Behrens, Hobbs’ senior counsel, said at the time that Hobbs was just following the law.
“We didn’t have a choice in the matter,” said Behrens. “In the Hobbs administration, we follow the law.”
Hobbs’ spokesman Christian Slater refused to elaborate on the original obligations behind the $16.4 million in a statement to KNAU. Slater also denied that the millions had any bearing on Hobbs’ reelection campaign.
“I’ll decline to comment on the processes by which we determine ARPA funding,” said Slater. “As the governor has always said, she is committed to doing what’s right for Arizona and putting politics aside.”
Hobbs said the funds were necessary to offset budget cuts from the fiscal year 2027 state budget, which she characterized as the product of “extremist” and “reckless” Republican lawmakers who she claimed were opposed to public education.
The $16.4 million matches the cuts the state budget made to each university.
“I will always fight to ensure state universities have the resources they need to deliver opportunities for Arizonans and ensure our employers have a high-skilled workforce,” said Hobbs. “ I’ll continue standing up to extremist legislators and their attacks on public education that kill jobs and make our state less competitive.”
The governor sang a different tune about the state budget less than four months ago when she signed it into law.
The 2027 fiscal year budget had earned the support of Hobbs and a bipartisan collective in the legislature.
Hobbs announced her approval of the budget back in June with a press release praising it as “her Arizona First budget” with laudable public education investments.
“I’m thrilled to sign the bipartisan Arizona First budget into law,” said Hobbs. “We’re stopping the data center tax credit for three years, investing in border security, education and water security, and delivering a $1.4 billion tax cut for middle class Arizonans. Starting on July 1, Arizonans will have no taxes on tips and overtime, a higher standard deduction, a deduction for seniors, and next year, an expanded child tax credit.”
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