The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has ended its lawsuit about a month after it filed to challenge the constitutionality of Proposition 314 — at least, for the time being.
The ACLU filed a notice of voluntary dismissal with the Arizona District Court on Wednesday. It made that filing a day after the preliminary injunction hearing was initially scheduled to occur, but which had been vacated the Friday prior.
Prop 314, passed by Arizona voters in 2024, gave law enforcement the authority to enforce federal immigration laws. An ACLU attorney representing Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project (Florence Project), the plaintiff challenging the proposition, says their team can find no evidence of law enforcement exercising this new authority.
Prop 314 made illegal immigration a state crime. That means state and local police may arrest illegal aliens and state judges may order deportations of illegal aliens. The proposition also required immigration verification for financial aid and public welfare, and made it a Class 6 felony to submit false information or documents for purposes of employment or public benefits.
The proposition went into effect in mid-July.
ACLU attorney John Mitchell said their team would wait for evidence that law enforcement or state judges had acted upon Prop 314 before relaunching their challenge.
“The trajectory of this litigation has always depended on when and how the state chooses to enforce Section 5,” said ACLU attorney John Mitchell. “In the first month that Section 5 has become fully enforceable, we’ve just seen none. So, from a litigation standpoint, it means our best strategy is to hold off until we get evidence of that enforcement.”
Mitchell’s take appeared to be the ACLU heeding arguments made by Attorney General Kris Mayes, who was named as a defendant in the lawsuit. Mayes’ team warned in a filed response that the lawsuit was premature since no law enforcement or courts had exercised Prop 314 authority.
“Because Section 5 has barely gone into effect, Florence Project has not shown and likely cannot show that anyone has been subject to arrest, detention, or prosecution for violating the illegal entry provision,” stated the attorney general’s office. “Likewise, no one has been subject to an order to depart the country under [the law], because such orders are tied to a charge or conviction for violating the illegal entry provision.”
The Florence Project, with the support of the ACLU and the ACLU of Arizona, filed its lawsuit in early July, claiming Prop 314 violated the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution. The organizations stated that only the federal government may regulate immigration.
“Immigration is a quintessentially federal authority. Congress has created a carefully calibrated immigration system, with detailed procedures that determine whether a person may remain in the United States, when to pursue criminal entry charges in the exercise of prosecutorial discretion, and what protections people receive to ensure that they do not face persecution or torture upon removal,” stated their complaint. “Congress placed all relevant authority in the hands of federal officials — in keeping with the federal government’s exclusive immigration powers and the sensitive foreign policy implications of these powers.”
The Arizona District Court denied the organization’s motion for a temporary restraining order about two weeks ago.
Living United For Change, another progressive group, lost their lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Prop 314 last year.
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Gov. Katie Hobbs says public education is woefully underfunded, but fiscal reporting indicates districts are flush with cash.
According to the latest Arizona Department of Education annual financial report, public school districts carried forward more than $8.3 billion in unspent funds from the 2024-25 fiscal year.
That is nearly equivalent to total appropriations that the state allocated for public education in the 2024-25 fiscal year: $8.9 billion, which goes beyond K-12 schools to include the Board of Regents, community colleges, and universities.
That $8.9 billion accounts for 55% of total appropriations out of the state’s general fund, which amounted to more than $16.2 billion in the 2024-25 fiscal year.
Within the $8.3 billion carried over from the 2024-25 fiscal year:
$1.6 billion for bond building
$1.3 billion for maintenance and operations
$1.2 billion for “other” funding
$941,000 for the Classroom Site Fund and Instructional Improvement Fund
$884,000 for unrestricted capital outlay
$708,000 for federal projects
$672,000 for bond principal deduction
$393,000 for debt service
$248,000 for food service
$150,000 for adjacent ways
$147,000 for school plant
$41,000 for state projects
The emergency deficiencies correction, building renewal, and new school facilities funds had negative balances of approximately $395,000, $19 million, and $33 million, respectively.
Last fall, the Common Sense Institute estimated that school districts hold more than $20 billion in combined cash reserves and underutilized real estate.
Public school district enrollment has declined steadily since 2008, more so in recent years after the state allowed universal enrollment for the ESA program in 2022.
Hobbs has advocated for lawmakers to revive Proposition 123, which would take around $300 million every year from the State Land Trust Permanent Fund and give it to education. $300 million is equivalent to a drop in the public education fund bucket: approximately 3% of what the state allocated from its general fund in the 2024-25 fiscal year.
Hobbs credited Prop 123 as providing “critical funding” for districts and educators in her State of the State address earlier this year. The governor said the funding provided by the proposition curbed the budget shortfall and would enable teacher pay raises and prevent future tax hikes.
The governor and lawmakers have failed to reach a consensus on renewing Prop 123. The proposition expired in June 2025.
Teresa Leyba Ruiz, the Democratic nominee for superintendent of public instruction, wants to claw back another 3% from a potential funding source. As reported earlier this week, Ruiz proposed reverting the $350 million set aside in Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program funds back to public schools.
32% of educators reported having an external job and 21% of educators indicated additional paid responsibilities and a second job outside their school, according to a 2024 report by Hobbs’ Educator Retention Task Force issued in partnership with the Arizona State University Morrison Institute for Public Policy.
That same report identified inadequate salary, unpaid duties and hours, pay differences, and salary compression as issues impacting retention. The report estimated that only 16% of educators agreed that their salary was satisfactory and motivated them to stay in their professions.
A more recent poll of more than 9,300 educators during the 2025-26 school year by the Arizona Department of Education also found that teacher pay was one of the biggest sources of dissatisfaction for educators.
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A coalition of U.S. House Democrats have banded together to pledge against socialism, but none of Arizona’s Democrat congressional leaders signed on.
Reps. Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ-07), Greg Stanton (D-AZ-04), and Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ-03) have not signed the Promise to America, an organization pushing a pledge to align the Democratic Party around the principles of capitalism, safety, fiscal responsibility, effective government, common purpose, and patriotism.
The three congressional leaders have not publicly aligned with socialism, and are not known to be members of the Democratic Socialists of America. Stanton’s primary challenger, Kai Newkirk, was a self-identified democratic socialist.
However, top Democrats in Arizona appear to be looking to reclaim and redefine socialism. Gov. Katie Hobbs’ consultant Stacy Pearson, who has represented her campaign to the media, recently told KJZZ that all public goods qualified as socialism, and that Democrats needed to reclaim socialist ideology as their own.
“[W]hen politicians are arguing against socialism, they’re arguing against well-funded public education and good universities and public transportation and affordable housing,” said Pearson. “The Democrats need to get a hold of the word socialist like we did with abortion, and we stopped using weird pitter-patter words like ‘reproductive freedom’ and ‘reproductive rights.’ No, we’re really talking about a woman’s right to have an abortion when she needs one, period. And so I think we need to get a hold of the word again and remind people what it really means.”
The new pledge from U.S. House Democrats against socialism declares a belief in an economy driven by merit and hard work, secure borders and orderly immigration, a balanced budget, reduced bureaucracy, free speech, common political ground, and confidence rooted in patriotism.
“We are proud, not ashamed of America,” stated the pledge. “We believe America’s story is one of extraordinary achievement and unfinished work. We honor America’s strengths and exceptional character while striving to build a freer, stronger, more prosperous, and more perfect union.”
Ten congressional Democrats and five candidates have signed the pledge as of this report. Signatories hail from California, Colorado, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, and Texas.
The pledge was developed by New York Rep. Tom Suozzi and California Rep. Adam Gray alongside a team of fellows following sizable wins from socialist candidates in the June primaries. The founding fellows were Felix Frisch, who serves as director; Mac Healey; Sarah Buchanan; Molly Uthoff; Aarynn Deleon; Chloe Stevelman; and Yenjay Hu.
Suozzi and Gray market themselves as the two Democrats to have successfully flipped districts that President Donald Trump won in the 2024 election cycle.
Promise to America appears to be aligned with the Welcome Party, which has an affiliated political action committee with millions in funding from the likes of LinkedIn cofounder and tech venture capitalist Reid Hoffman, former 21st century Fox CEO James Murdoch, and Walmart heir Samuel Walton.
Only one Democratic candidate from Arizona was listed as having signed the pledge: Marlene Galan Woods, who lost the Democratic nomination for the 1st congressional district seat to Amish Shah.
Candidates Jonathan Nez, 2nd congressional district; Elizabeth Lee, 5th congressional district; JoAnna Mendoza, 6th congressional district; Bernadette Greene-Placentia, 8th congressional district; and Dani Sterbinksy, 9th congressional district, also have not signed the pledge.
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A Maricopa County Superior Court judge ordered Arizona election officials Tuesday to rewrite the descriptive title and “yes” and “no” statements for Proposition 212. The judge found that the current version omits substantial changes to enforcement and government oversight and misleadingly describes Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program as a “school voucher program.”
Judge Julie Ann Mata enjoined Secretary of State Adrian Fontes from using the current language on the official ballot or in the publicity pamphlet. She also issued a writ directing Fontes and Attorney General Kris Mayes to revise the language in accordance with state law and her ruling.
The court left the exact wording to Fontes and Mayes under their statutory drafting and approval authority. Mata declined to order the state to adopt replacement language proposed by the plaintiffs and denied their request for attorneys’ fees and costs.
Daryl Groves and the Arizona Free Enterprise Club (AFEC) filed the case against Mayes and Fontes on July 28. Protect Education, Accountability Now, the political committee sponsoring Proposition 212, participated as a friend of the court in support of the challenged language. The defendants argued that the wording fairly summarized the measure and complied with A.R.S. § 19-125(D).
AFEC called the order a “major victory for Arizona school choice” and said, “Arizona voters deserve the truth.”
BREAKING NEWS: MAJOR VICTORY FOR ARIZONA SCHOOL CHOICE
The Arizona Free Enterprise Club has won at the trial court in our lawsuit challenging the misleading ballot language drafted for Proposition 212: the union-backed initiative targeting Arizona’s ESA program.
Mata wrote that the court’s review addressed the accuracy of the ballot language and left the policy merits of Proposition 212 to voters.
The version posted by the Secretary of State before the ruling states that Proposition 212 would limit ESA eligibility to families earning $150,000 or less per year, with specified exceptions; prohibit spending on noneducational and luxury items; impose qualifications on tutors; require accreditation or testing for participating schools; and generally return unspent annual ESA allocations to the state.
The full initiative also gives the sponsoring committee or its designee standing to initiate or intervene in litigation to enforce or defend the measure. Mata found that authority to be a substantial change that the ballot title or description must disclose. She found that the existing phrase “other rules and restrictions” failed to adequately inform voters about it.
Mata also found that the “yes” statement omitted a substantial change to two existing statutory limits on government control or supervision of nonpublic schools and homeschools. Proposition 212 would amend those provisions to permit control or supervision provided elsewhere in the ESA chapter for schools and homeschools receiving ESA funds. The court did not rule on the constitutionality of that proposed change.
The judge separately found the phrase “school voucher program” misleading. She cited Arizona decisions that invalidated two voucher programs and later upheld the ESA program under a different legal structure. Mata wrote that using the phrase could lead voters to treat the legally distinct programs as equivalent.
The court rejected one of AFEC’s arguments. The group argued that describing the $150,000 income limit as “adjusted for inflation” could mislead voters because the initiative caps the annual adjustment at the lower of 2% or the change in the gross domestic product price deflator. Mata found the existing wording provided appropriate information and held that omitting the precise formula was not misleading.
In a separate decision, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Daniel Martin also ordered changes Tuesday to a separate piece of voter information concerning Proposition 212. The judge directed the Arizona Legislative Council to revise its analysis for the publicity pamphlet by Aug. 21.
Martin found the Council’s statement that the initiative committee would have “the power to sue the families and private schools that participate in the program for any violations of the proposition” sufficiently partisan to violate state law. He ordered the Council to strike or revise the language by Aug. 21. The Council’s adopted three-page analysis is governed by a separate law requiring an impartial explanation for the publicity pamphlet.
Mata’s case concerned the shorter ballot title and “yes” and “no” statements prepared by the Secretary of State and approved by the Attorney General.
Proposition 212’s ballot qualification remains the subject of separate litigation over petition circulators and signatures. That case, Clark v. Fontes, is a Goldwater Institute and AFEC-backed challenge to the initiative’s petition circulators and signatures. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge David McDowell is expected to rule on the matter by the end of the week. The amended complaint seeks to prevent the initiative from appearing on the November ballot.
Gov. Katie Hobbs confirmed that the rumors of her lieutenant governor pick were true: John Giles is her running mate.
Hobbs went public with her decision the weekend following an initial deadline from the secretary of state’s office, reportedly established to ensure the state had adequate time for ballot printing.
Giles is the former mayor of Mesa and a recently registered independent who voted in the Democratic primary this year. Giles voted for Joe Biden in 2020, endorsed Sen. Mark Kelly in 2022, and Kamala Harris in 2024.
During the 2024 election, Giles led the Arizona Republicans for Harris organization and spoke at the Democratic National Convention. Giles said in Tuesday’s announcement that those with the Republican Party were “extremists” that prevented good governance.
“I was a lifelong Republican before becoming an independent because extremists shouldn’t stand in the way of getting things done,” said Giles.
Arizona deserves leaders who put our state ahead of partisan politics.
That’s why I’m proud to have former Mesa Mayor @johngiles4AZ by my side as my pick for Lieutenant Governor.
Together, we’ll put Arizona first, deliver real results, and keep moving our state forward. pic.twitter.com/TddoGok0Ve
Not long after going public as Hobbs’ running mate, Giles announced he would fall in line with Hobbs’ preferred non-engagement approach to campaigning and announced he would not be participating in any public debates.
Sine Kerr, Republican nominee Andy Biggs’ running mate, had stated shortly after Hobbs’ reveal that she was eager to debate Giles.
“We should discuss my Arizona Women’s Bill of Rights legislation and SB1583, which protected children from predators,” said Kerr. “Katie Hobbs vetoed both. Maybe John Giles can explain why.”
Kerr said Hobbs and Giles avoiding debates was unfair to voters.
“It’s really unfortunate that they don’t want to stand for a debate. They don’t want to answer tough questions,” Kerr said. “I think it’s very disrespectful to the people, to the voters of Arizona.”
The Arizona Clean Election Commission scheduled a debate between the lieutenant governor picks to occur on October 5.
Looking forward to the Lt. Governor’s Debate on October 5th with Democrat primary voter John Giles.
We should discuss my Arizona Women’s Bill of Rights legislation and SB1583, which protected children from predators.
Hobbs told Arizona’s Family that she selected Giles because he, too, has a history of governing beyond political party.
“I believe Arizonans deserve leadership that puts them ahead of the partisan politics. That’s how I’ve governed,” said Hobbs.
Hobbs dismissed the notion that issues facing Arizonans, including traditionally partisan ones like abortion, were not actually partisan.
“[P]rotecting reproductive freedom, which is not a partisan issue. It’s something that a vast majority of Arizonans support. We’re on the same page,” said Hobbs.
Giles said that the topic of abortion should be left to the voters, which is why he supported Proposition 139.
“I’m a Republican with standards,” said Giles. “In recent years, I felt like some of the folks at the top of the ticket and the Republican Party were just below the bar with regard to character and commitment to the Constitution and rule of law.”
Many of Giles’ most significant policies and initiatives as mayor of Mesa aligned with Democratic Party priorities. In some cases, Giles preempted Hobbs on progressive policy.
In 2021, Giles led the passage of an ordinance to add sexual orientation and gender identity to the protected classes in the city’s nondiscrimination laws. The ordinance was similar to those adopted by the cities of Phoenix, Flagstaff, Tempe, and, later, Chandler.
Residents opposed to the ordinance cited concerns of males entering spaces historically reserved for females, such as restrooms and locker rooms, and that businesses would face religious persecution. Giles dismissed those concerns as not based in reality and told those opponents that the city had considered the ordinance since he joined as a city council member in 2014. About two years later, Hobbs’ first executive order prohibited gender identity discrimination.
“We’re not breaking any ground here,” said Giles. “This ordinance is moderate and reflects the input from the community. This is a mainstream ordinance that hasn’t been dictated to us from any outside groups.”
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