by AZ Free Enterprise Club | Nov 27, 2024 | Opinion
By the Arizona Free Enterprise Club |
Since the results of the 2024 election came in, much of the focus has been on President-elect Donald Trump’s historic win—and rightfully so. Trump won every single swing state in a massive victory over Vice President Kamala Harris, and he beat her in the popular vote too.
But Kamala Harris wasn’t the only significant loser to come out of November’s election.
Here in Arizona, teachers’ unions and other anti-school choice groups, like Save Our Schools Arizona (SOSAZ), made the 2024 election a referendum on school choice. And they lost big!
Much of their work began earlier this year, when Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs came into legislative session (just like she did in 2023) with her top priority being to regulate the wildly popular Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program out of existence. But it didn’t work. Despite the noise from Hobbs, legislative Democrats, the legacy media, the teachers’ unions, and other anti-school choice groups, only minor changes were made to the ESA program through the budget, with most of it remaining untouched.
This failure fell on the heels of other similar failures…
>>> CONTINUE READING >>>
by Daniel Stefanski | Nov 4, 2024 | Education, News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Arizona’s most recent Republican governor is cheering on his state’s latest ranking in a key education report.
This week, Governor Doug Ducey shared a new report from the Reason Foundation on the “K-12 open enrollment laws of all 50 states.” Ducey said, “Another new report shows that Arizona’s education system is one of the best in the nation. Arizona ranks number 3 among all 50 states for our expansive open enrollment policies that ensure every Arizona family has access to a good, high-quality education.”
Jude Schwalbach, a Senior Policy Analyst for Reason, said, “K-12 open enrollment lets students transfer to public schools other than their residentially assigned one so long as space is available. School parents widely support this policy. Public polling from October 2023 by yes. every kid. and YouGov showed that 84% of school parents supported it, while EdChoice’s July 2024 polling showed that 73% of school parents supported open enrollment.”
Schwalbach added, “Students participating in Arizona’s, Colorado’s, and Florida’s open enrollment programs tended to transfer to school districts that were ranked higher by the state, according to Reason Foundation research… On average, 10% of students in Arizona, Florida, and Wisconsin used open enrollment during the 2021-22 school year, totaling more than 450,000 students. Nearly 177,000 of these transferred to schools in other districts. In Wisconsin, open enrollment was the most popular form of school choice and the second most popular in Arizona and Florida during that time, according to data published by Education Next.”
State-specific analysis for Arizona revealed that “the Grand Canyon State also requires districts and schools to update their available capacity every 12 weeks by grade level on their website. The Arizona Department of Education must also provide an annual report to policymakers and the public that shows ‘the open enrollment participation rate by school district, school, and county, including the number of pupils, by student subgroup designation, in each school and school district that are open enrolled as resident pupils, resident transfer pupils, or nonresident pupils for each school district and the school districts and zip codes from which students are rejected.’”
The report gave three suggestions for Arizona to increase its standing with the open enrollment laws. Those ways were as follows:
- “Require the SEA to publish the number of rejected applicants and explain why they were denied in its annual report.
- “Clarify that school districts cannot reject transfer applicants based on their abilities.
- “Require school districts to inform parents of rejected transfer applicants in writing the reasons for rejection.”
In the 2022 report, which was the final one of Ducey’s administration, Reason wrote of the Arizona system and subsequent ranking, “Opponents to open enrollment often object to the policy because it could lower the value of homes inside the district or attendance zones, unfairly penalizing families that ‘bought into the system.’ However, the public school choice options available to families in Arizona should allay those fears. The state’s mandatory cross-district and within-district open enrollment program operates side by side with a robust charter school system. Despite the fact that nearly one in four students enrolled in affluent Scottsdale’s public schools is assigned to different school districts, home values have not decreased. In fact, Scottsdale home prices have steadily increased in recent years. This shows that open enrollment does not damage property values; instead a robust education marketplace can actually be an attractive component to home buyers.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Matthew Holloway | Oct 30, 2024 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey announced his opposition to Proposition 140 in a press release from the ‘No on Prop 140’ Committee last week. Prop 140 would convert the Arizona elections system into what has been referred to as “a California-style election scheme built around ranked-choice voting and jungle primaries.”
“Prop 140 would hand the keys to our elections over to a future Legislature, and potentially give a blank check to one partisan politician — the Secretary of State — to determine on his or her own which candidates advance to the general election,” Ducey said.
“Like many Arizonans, I am open to reforms, but this is a recipe for disaster and unintended consequences. We can do better. Join a bipartisan coalition of Arizonans in voting No on Prop 140.”
“We are grateful for Governor Ducey’s staunch opposition to Proposition 140,” said Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb and former Arizona Supreme Court Justice Andrew Gould, co-chairs of the No on Prop 140 Committee. “Governor Ducey, like many Arizonans of varying political persuasions, realizes the irreversible harms this ballot measure would inflict on our state. We must not allow Arizona to fall prey to this dangerous election scheme. Vote NO on Prop 140!”
As previously reported by AZ Free News, the efforts to impose this new system of voting on Arizona is being bankrolled by a group known as ‘Unite America’ (formerly known as the Centrist Project) which gave over $1.7 million to boost the Make Elections Fair PAC earlier in October.
This group, headed by Kent Thiry, a wealthy political figure who has spearheaded progressive political causes in Colorado, has and is still pushing similar reforms in states such as Alaska, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
The committee explained that Prop 140 would add 15 new amendments to the Arizona Constitution. It would:
- Allow one partisan politician, the Arizona Secretary of State, to decide how many candidates qualify for the general election ballot for every single contest, including his or her own race.
- Result in some races where candidates from only one political party appear on the general election ballot.
- Force voters to navigate two completely different voting systems on the same ballot, with some races requiring voters to rank candidates under a rank choice voting system and others that do not.
- Increase tabulation errors, create longer lines at the polls, and significantly delay election results.
Ducey, returning to political news after an extremely public and acrimonious split with Trump-supporting Republicans, endorsed both President Donald Trump and AZGOP Senate candidate Kari Lake for the 2024 election in August. “Much is on the line this election year & I’m encouraging all eligible Arizonans to vote & prioritize the issues that most affect our state & nation. I will be voting for Republicans up & down the ballot in November — and both Donald Trump and Kari Lake have my endorsement,” he wrote in a social media post.
Ducey explained:
- “The border must be secured.
- Inflation must be tamed.
- America must be respected around the globe and World War III must be avoided.
- The Supreme Court should not be restructured by Chuck Schumer.
- The TCJA [Tax Cuts and Jobs Act] must be extended and made permanent.
- School choice must be supported.
Differences aside, there is too much on the line and only a Republican in the White House and a majority in the House and US Senate can ensure it.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Daniel Stefanski | Sep 27, 2024 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Two of Arizona’s Supreme Court justices are facing a fight for their future tenure on the bench.
This November, Arizona voters will have the opportunity to retain two key votes on the state’s high court, Justices Clint Bolick and Kathryn King. Both justices have demonstrated a consistent standard for standing on the principle of the law, not politics, though their stances have often angered outside interests – including the groups now attempting to remove them from the court.
Bolick and King were appointed by former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey. Bolick received his appointment to the Arizona Supreme Court in 2016, while King obtained hers in 2021. Both justices served in the private sector as attorneys prior to making their journey to the state court.
According to the Arizona Commission on Judicial Performance Review (JPR), both Bolick and King received extremely high marks to meet the standards on the merits of their decisions. The Commission “exists to provide meaningful and accurate information to the public for its use in voting on the justices and judges appointed to the bench through merit selection.” In his average of all evaluation categories, Bolick acquired 97% or greater. King had 90% and over for her categories. The JPR is used for voter recommendations for each cycle’s judicial retention elections.
For most voters in Arizona, judicial retention contests are often met with more apathy than any other selection(s) on their ballots. In recent elections, however, outside groups have put more of a target on judges for increased voter scrutiny, leading to the addition of Bolick and King with this year’s ballot choices. This is Bolick’s second retention election and King’s first.
Earlier this year, Bolick and King drew the ire of progressive groups after their votes in a controversial abortion case. The group helping to lead the efforts to oust the two justices, Protect Abortion Rights Arizona, posted on its website, “Arizonans need a fair judiciary that will protect our rights. This year, Arizona voters will decide whether to vote out two of the Supreme Court justices who voted to uphold the total, 160-year old abortion ban.”
In an op-ed published in The Arizona Republic this past May, Bolick explained his vote on the abortion case. He wrote, “Serious commentators, liberal and conservative, who actually read the decision (which I encourage voters to do), agree it is solidly grounded in law. We had before us not a question of policy, or even of constitutionality, but simply whether the Legislature in 2022, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, restored an earlier abortion restriction. After careful analysis, we concluded it did.”
The high-profile justice continued: “I cannot count the number of cases in which I have voted against my policy preferences. One example is when Gov. Doug Ducey vetoed nearly two dozen conservative bills over a budget dispute with the Legislature. They were passed again, then challenged by the Arizona School Boards Association. We struck them all down because they were passed unconstitutionally as part of the budget rather than as standalone bills.”
The case that Bolick was referring to in his piece was Arizona School Boards Association v. Arizona. The plaintiffs had challenged four budget reconciliation bills – HB 2898, SB 1824, SB 1825, and SB 1819. The court unanimously decided that the bills were void in part because of they violated the title requirement, and that SB 1819 was entirely void because it violated the single subject rule. Justice Bolick factored into the decision of the court, yet King recused herself. According to the court, the Arizona constitution “requires that appropriations beyond the scope of the general appropriations bill ‘shall be made by separate bills, each embracing but one subject.’”
As the court wrote in its conclusion, “We respect the role of the legislature in the discharge of its constitutional duties, including in its budgetary processes, and we heed our constitution’s fundamental premise that the division of powers necessarily impels judicial restraint, particularly in the realm of lawmaking. But this Court’s constitutional duty to interpret and apply the constitution requires us to invalidate a law if it infringes the constitution. Thus, today we do not intrude upon the legislature’s unique constitutional authority; instead, we merely exercise our own such authority to interpret, apply, and enforce the Arizona Constitution’s command that the legislature’s acts comply with the title requirement and the single subject rule.”
Judicial Independence Defense PAC has taken the side of Bolick and King, working to convince enough voters to retain these two justices in the upcoming fall election. The group warns that these retentions have been grossly politicized, and that Arizonans will pay the price if Bolick and King are removed from the bench. The PAC states, “From the federal level on down, we’ve seen politics creep its way into the judicial branch. But our courts should be independent, and in Arizona they have been. According to published media reports, out-of-state liberal groups like the National Democratic Redistricting Committee and Planned Parenthood Votes have budgeted $5 million to take over Arizona’s Court and defeat Justices Clint Bolick and Kate King. If they succeed, liberal Governor Katie Hobbs will get to choose their replacements, giving liberals a majority on the Arizona Supreme Court for the first time.”
These cautionary words from the Judicial Independence PAC echoes what Bolick also penned in his aforementioned op-ed. Bolick said, “The groups opposing us need a serious civics lesson about the role of the courts. Nowhere in their materials will you read about the importance of an independent judiciary in protecting our free society. Instead, they think we should decide cases based on the ‘will of the people.’ How do we determine that? Commission a poll? Convene a focus group? Simply assume the Legislature always reflects the will of the people?”
Bolick answered his questions with a quote from the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, saying, “As Justice O’Connor put it following her retirement, ‘the judiciary should not respond to public opinion in its individual decisions,’ but instead should be ‘accountable to the public for its constitutional role of applying the law fairly and impartially.’ That is what the iconic image of the scales of justice is all about.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Staff Reporter | Aug 26, 2024 | Economy, News
By Staff Reporter |
One of the lawmakers responsible for the state’s historic income and small business tax reduction law is key to maintaining Republican control of the Arizona Senate.
State Senator J.D. Mesnard is running for re-election to Arizona Legislative District 13, which covers Chandler, Gilbert, and Sun Lakes in the East Valley of the Phoenix-metro area. Mesnard first entered the state legislature in January 2011 in the Arizona House of Representatives, and he served eight years in that chamber, including two years as the Speaker of the House. In November 2018, after being termed out of the House, Mesnard won his election to the state Senate.
Over his time in the Arizona Legislature, Mesnard has proven himself to be one of the top fiscal responsibility hawks in either chamber. On his campaign website, he addresses his thoughts on this issue, writing, “I support keeping taxes as low as possible, and we can’t have low taxes with reckless government spending. The fact is, the more government spends, the more we pay for it in higher taxes and/or saddle future generations with unsustainable debt. That doesn’t mean that all government spending is bad. For instance, funding public safety, a quality education system, and infrastructure are all necessary public goods. But I also believe that state government should follow the same financial guidelines that any responsible individual or family would follow: spend only what’s necessary, don’t rack up debt, invest in your learning, save for the future, and when times get tough, find responsible ways to trim.”
In 2021, Mesnard was responsible for a historic tax reform proposal that made its way through the Arizona Legislature and into law – SB 1828. This legislation ushered in a flat tax on individual incomes of Arizonans.
Mesnard was also the author of SB 1783, which lowered taxes on small businesses. The bill passed the state legislature and was signed by then-Republican Governor Doug Ducey.
After signing the bill into law in July 2021, Ducey recognized Mesnard for his efforts, when he said, “This tax cut will keep Arizona competitive for small businesses already operating here and new businesses flocking here every day. After a year as tough as the last, we should not be raising taxes on our small businesses — we should be cutting their taxes. That’s exactly what Senate Bill 1783 does. Arizona has now passed the largest tax cut in state history and will have the lowest flat tax in the country. My thanks go out to Senator J.D. Mesnard and Representative Ben Toma for their leadership on this issue.”
Mesnard added, “Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and integral to the future success of our state. Small businesses should be able to grow and reinvest in themselves without being forced to pay astronomical taxes. Rather, government should get out of the way so that they can thrive. That’s why I’m so grateful for the support of Governor Ducey and my colleagues in the Legislature.”
Two staunch free-market advocates Tim Phillips (President of Americans for Prosperity) and Grover Norquist (President of Americans for Tax Reform) wrote a piece in Newsweek, praising the accomplished feat of the Arizona Legislature, spearheaded by Mesnard, and Ducey. They stated, “Arizona, on the other hand, provides a good example: lower the tax rates to let people keep more of what they earn and invest in what they care about most. Limit government spending to grow no faster than the incomes of the citizens who pay the taxes. Create a magnet for job-creating investment and hardworking Americans who simply wish to be left alone to work hard, take care of their families and support their communities.”
Phillips and Norquist put the finishing flourish on their thoughts by saying, “The Arizona reform is a positive model and one that should be followed by other states and the federal government.”
When the Arizona Supreme Court gave the green light for these tax reforms to go into effect in a highly anticipated ruling, Arizona Free Enterprise President Scot Mussi said, “Today’s decision from the Arizona Supreme Court is a big win for taxpayers in our state. The legislature passed historic tax cuts last year that benefit all Arizona taxpayers. It’s time for Invest in Arizona and out-of-state special interest groups to accept this reality and stop making a farce of the referendum process.”
Mesnard touted the progress of his historic legislation in a campaign newsletter in January 2023, saying, “The historic tax reform that I championed in 2021 is now in effect for income earned this year – a full year ahead of schedule thanks to strong government revenues. Valued at more than $2 billion, this reform reduced individual tax rates to 2.5%, resulting in a tax cut for every single Arizona family and Arizona having the lowest flat tax in the nation.”
The east valley lawmaker added, “Depending on your tax decisions, if you choose to lower your withholding rates this year, you will be able to keep more of your own hard-earned dollars with each paycheck that hits your checking account. That will help take some of the edge off sticker shock at the grocery store.”
According to the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission, Legislative District 13 is one of the most competitive in the state, with a 1.6% vote spread between Republicans and Democrats in the past nine statewide elections. In those contests, Republicans have won five times, compared to four for Democrats.
Mesnard will be facing off against Democrat nominee, Sharon Winters, in the November General Election. On his website, Mesnard asks voters to give him another term in the state senate, writing, “Now we face historic economic challenges that require someone with the right experience and a track record of success to navigate. That’s why I need your vote. Let me continue using my diverse background, which includes husband (to a registered nurse), father, professor and small business owner, with master’s degrees in business and public administration, to keep delivering results for you.”
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
