by Staff Reporter | Jan 24, 2026 | Education, News
By Staff Reporter |
Republican state lawmakers want to improve accountability for school superintendents.
Several packages of bills released Thursday would reform superintendent contracts and duties, school board governments, and school district leasing and financial arrangements.
The bill package was a result of the Tolleson Union High School District (TUHSD) scandal that emerged last year. TUHSD entered a controversial $25 million leaseback agreement with a failing school district, which began without an appraisal and in which TUHSD Superintendent Jeremy Calles operated as a consultant for the deal.
The lawmaker behind the proposed reforms, State Representative Matt Gress, said in a press release that some districts have strayed from their intended purpose of educating students.
“Public schools exist to serve students, not administrators or board members who disregard their responsibilities,” said Gress. “This legislative package sets clear rules and ensures education dollars stay focused where they belong — on instruction and students.”
Gress also stated that the events at TUHSD made it clear that additional oversight was needed.
“When school leaders control large public budgets with little oversight, taxpayers and classrooms pay the price,” said Gress. “Arizona families deserve confidence that education dollars are managed responsibly and that those in authority are held to clear, enforceable standards.”
Arizona lawmakers unanimously approved an audit of the district.
TUHSD has delayed sending its financial transaction records despite repeated legislative requests. The district insisted the legislature pay over $26,000 for the records.
During a hearing by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee over the summer, TUHSD Superintendent Calles admitted to using his superintendent office to conduct the business of his private consulting firm. Several district staff or governing board members also work for Calles’ consulting business.
Calles is the highest-paid superintendent in the state.
This conflict between the district and legislature over the leaseback agreement and Calles’ conduct was a major influence on voters. They rejected two key funding measures proposed by TUHSD in this recent election.
The district faces a shortfall of $95 million at minimum, $200 million minimum more likely.
In 2024, TUHSD was busted for arranging “luxury vacations” for school board members and administrators.
The first bill package to reform superintendent contracts and duties contains House Bills 2387, 2386, 2381, 2382, 2377, and 2385. Reforms include limiting secondary employment for school district officials, raising standards for superintendents’ performance based-pay, limiting benefits and other perks given to superintendents like cell phone and vehicle allowances, and reducing the employment term for first-time superintendents to one year.
The second bill package to reform school governance contains House Bills 2318, 2380, and 2379. Reforms include establishing governing board member term limits, requiring convenient public venues for school board meetings, and requiring more training for school board members on governance, finances, policymaking, legal and ethical responsibilities, stakeholder and community engagement, and relevant professional development topics.
The third bill package to reform school district leasing and financial arrangements contains House Bills 2384, 2376, and 2383. Reforms include limiting allowed circumstances of leasing school property; excluding lease-purchase agreements for sites where charter or private schools operate; and limiting leases to 10 years without voter approval or 20 years with voter approval.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by Jonathan Eberle | Dec 14, 2025 | Education, News
By Jonathan Eberle |
Hours after State Representative Matt Gress urged the Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) Governing Board to postpone its decision on whether to close two schools, the Board voted to permanently shutter Pima Elementary and Echo Canyon K-8—fueling frustration among families and intensifying scrutiny of the district’s financial review process.
Gress, who chairs the House Education Committee and co-chairs the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, had asked the Board to wait until February 1 before taking action. In a letter sent Monday, he warned that the district had not provided the public with a complete fiscal analysis or a thorough exploration of alternatives.
“Closing schools has lasting consequences. Before the board takes any action, the public should see a full explanation of the fiscal impact, the alternatives that were considered, and how the district plans to support the students who would be uprooted,” Gress wrote. “Based on what I have seen so far, that work is incomplete.”
At Tuesday’s meeting, the Governing Board voted 3–2 to permanently close both Pima Elementary and Echo Canyon K-8 beginning next school year. The decision comes as SUSD faces declining enrollment, rising operating costs, and a projected budget deficit that could reach $9 million by 2026.
Superintendent Dr. Scott Menzel told families that the district can no longer sustain all of its campuses under current conditions. “These realities make it increasingly difficult to sustain all of our schools in their current form while continuing to provide the world-class, future-focused education our community expects and deserves,” he said.
District data presented Tuesday showed that 12% of Pima families and 17% of Echo Canyon families have already enrolled in alternate district schools for next year—figures officials say reflect the difficult choices families are already making.
While the Board cited urgency, Gress countered that SUSD still has financial alternatives that would allow more time for a complete public review before making irreversible decisions. He emphasized that families deserve clarity before the district proceeds with closures that will significantly disrupt school communities.
“This decision can wait,” he said. “Taking the time to do this right will help the board make a more informed and beneficial choice.”
With the vote now final, the repurposing process for both campuses is scheduled to begin in the 2026–2027 school year—while families, lawmakers, and district officials continue to debate whether the closures were necessary, inevitable, or simply premature.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Jonathan Eberle | Dec 8, 2025 | Education, News
By Jonathan Eberle |
More than one hundred days after receiving a legislative request for detailed financial transaction records, the Tolleson Union High School District has yet to turn over the documents, prompting renewed scrutiny from Arizona lawmakers.
State Rep. Matt Gress (R-LD4), a Phoenix Republican who chairs the House Education Committee and co-chairs the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, marked the milestone with a sharply worded statement criticizing the district’s continued refusal to release the information.
Gress first requested electronic copies of the district’s financial transactions on August 26, following a legislative audit hearing on Tolleson Union’s fiscal practices. A follow-up letter was issued on September 17. According to Gress, the district has not complied with either request.
“In that time, the district has refused to provide electronic copies, demanded more than $26,000 in fees meant to discourage oversight, and ignored repeated clarifications,” Gress said. “No other public entity in Arizona has ever tried to block access to routine financial information.
The lawmaker said the Legislature has an obligation to track how taxpayer funds are allocated and questioned why the district is resisting disclosure of what he described as basic purchase order and transaction data. He noted that other school districts routinely produce similar exports from their financial software within days.
Tolleson Union has faced heightened public scrutiny in recent months. In November, voters rejected both a bond and budget override measure by wide margins—an outcome Gress pointed to as evidence of waning community trust. “Their message was clear: restore accountability,” he said. “A 100-day refusal to cooperate is unacceptable and cannot continue.”
Gress urged the district’s governing board to direct staff to immediately release the requested records and pledged that lawmakers would “continue pressing for these records until they are produced.”
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Jonathan Eberle | Nov 18, 2025 | News
By Jonathan Eberle |
Arizona House Speaker Steve Montenegro has formed a new advisory team to investigate allegations that Governor Katie Hobbs’ administration awarded a lucrative contract increase to a politically connected group home provider, raising fresh questions about influence and accountability inside the Department of Child Safety (DCS).
The move follows reporting by The Arizona Republic that Sunshine Residential Homes received a 30% rate increase after contributing more than $400,000 to Hobbs and Democratic political committees. According to documents cited in the reporting, other group home providers seeking similar adjustments were denied. Internal communications reportedly show DCS staff discussing the provider’s political connections to the governor and suggesting the increase be kept quiet from competing organizations.
The revelations come as DCS faces a budget shortfall and has been under pressure to reduce reliance on group home placements, making the agency’s decision to grant a significant rate hike particularly notable. Speaker Montenegro said the advisory team will conduct a legislative investigation to assemble facts, coordinate with law-enforcement agencies, and evaluate possible actions the House may take to prevent preferential treatment in state contracting.
“The facts reported raise serious questions the House cannot ignore,” Montenegro said in a statement. “Arizona’s children, families, and taxpayers deserve a system that is clean, fair, and focused on care, not political access or donations.”
The speaker also directed state agencies and contractors to preserve all relevant records and to cooperate fully with the Legislature. The advisory panel includes several senior lawmakers including Rep. Selina Bliss, Chair of the House Health and Human Services Committee; Rep. David Livingston, Chair of House Appropriations; Rep. Matt Gress, Chair of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee; Rep. Quang Nguyen, Chair of House Judiciary; and Speaker Pro Tempore Neal Carter.
The investigation builds on earlier legislative efforts to probe the relationship between Sunshine Residential Homes and the Hobbs administration. In 2024, Rep. Matt Gress requested investigations by the Maricopa County Attorney and the Auditor General following the first reports linking the provider to political contributions and favorable treatment. Rep. David Livingston separately urged Attorney General Kris Mayes to recuse herself, citing concerns about conflicts of interest involving the governor and the Democratic Party.
The House advisory team is expected to begin its work immediately and will coordinate with any parallel investigations by the Auditor General, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, or the Attorney General. Montenegro said lawmakers will “secure the records, ask the hard questions, and, if necessary, change the law to ensure it never happens again.”
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Staff Reporter | Nov 12, 2025 | News
By Staff Reporter |
Arizona may be the next state to adopt drug injection sites following Governor Katie Hobbs’ veto.
Safe injection sites, overdose prevention centers, safer drug consumption services, supervised injection services—all descriptors for locations or facilities where drug addicts can inject illegal drugs while medical personnel watch to ensure an overdose doesn’t occur. In the event of an overdose, personnel intervene to reverse it.
Arizona doesn’t have any drug injection sites—yet. It also doesn’t have a ban on them, and it won’t for the foreseeable future under this current administration.
Earlier this year, Governor Katie Hobbs vetoed HB2798, a bill that would have prohibited local governments from allowing the development of any drug injection sites. Hobbs indicated the injection sites were part of “common sense solutions” for drug addiction.
“These sites are nonexistent in Arizona,” said Hobbs. “I encourage the Legislature to seek common sense solutions to actually help Arizonans struggling with substance use disorder.”
Hobbs’ veto rationale wasn’t widely shared by others in her party. Other states banned drug injection sites before they came into existence. Pennsylvania, for example, passed a ban in 2023 with the support of Governor Josh Shapiro, also a Democrat. So did California.
State-supplied overdose reversal kits are widespread in the state already, even and especially in places where minors frequent. Arizona schools have received tens of thousands of overdose kits in recent years to address the growing trend of minors abusing drugs. Libraries across the Valley also received more than their fair share.
The lawmaker behind the rejected bill, Republican State Rep. Matt Gress, said Hobbs should be replaced for killing his legislation.
Gress paired his commentary with recent footage of an injection site from Canada in Vancouver, British Columbia.
“Arizona deserves a better governor,” said Gress.
Those who spoke out against the bill during committee hearings included the Southwest Recovery Alliance (SRA).
SRA’s executive director Arlene Mahoney opposed the bill language referring to drug injection sites as “narcotics injection sites” rather than “overdose prevention centers,” which advocates often prefer.
“I think the name ‘narcotics injection site’ incites a lot of fear into people and it doesn’t encompass what an overdose prevention center actually provides. It’s an integrative healthcare facility that offers, yes, a safe place for people to consume pre-obtained drugs inside a facility which they would be doing in parks and other places anyways,” said Mahoney.
Mahoney was a social worker and co-investigator on a federally funded study on methadone application at the University of Arizona’s Harm Reduction Research Lab from last year to August.
In 2023, the Biden administration issued a $5 million grant to study the effectiveness of overdose prevention across 1,000 participants at two safe injection sites in New York City and one in Providence, Rhode Island, over the course of four years.
The first injection site in the United States was authorized to launch by New York City in 2021.
Apart from New York and Rhode Island, few legally sanctioned drug injection sites exist because of concerns with federal drug laws.
The city council of Denver, Colorado, attempted to implement a drug injection site in 2018, but the Trump administration warned the site would be illegal.
However, after the Biden administration showed a friendliness to the concept, more drug injection centers are emerging.
In 2022, San Francisco launched a social services resource facility, the Tenderloin Center, that quickly devolved into a drug injection site. The transition to the latter caused the site’s closure after less than a year.
The Tenderloin Center racked up a serious bill: $22 million to service around 400 people daily for 11 months. That’s about $72,400 a day—just under $200 per person if, indeed, an average of 400 people used the center daily.
Last year, Vermont established operating guidelines for drug injection centers after its legislature authorized and funded a drug injection center in the city of Burlington. The city launched its drug injection pilot program earlier this year.
Minnesota has authorized state funding for drug injection centers, but hasn’t granted legal authorization for them.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
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