Gov. Katie Hobbs has vowed to kill Arizona’s school choice program one way or another and on Wednesday she announced that she might have found a way to do serious damage to it. Hobbs alleges that Governor Doug Ducey made a $50 million grant made to the Treasurer in the final hours of his administration that is “illegal and invalid.”
Hobbs advised the Arizona State Treasurer’s Office that the grant “agreement attempted to improperly use federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act to fund all-day kindergarten for ESA recipients, despite the fact that the State funds only half-day kindergarten for public school students.”
“Katie is wrong,” tweeted Abe Hamadeh, the Republican Party’s nominee for Attorney General. “Kris Mayes and Katie Hobbs are targeting minority children who are trying to escape failing schools. They are lawless and heartless.”
Katie is wrong. Kris Mayes and Katie Hobbs are targeting minority children who are trying to escape failing schools. They are lawless and heartless. https://t.co/ubB8z2IHm9
— Abe Hamadeh (@AbrahamHamadeh) May 25, 2023
However, Hobbs stated in a press release that she “averted a violation of federal law and the State Constitution. In my administration, we are committed to deploying federal funds lawfully and equitably.”
According to Capitol insiders, it is a complicated situation, and both Hobbs and Hamadeh could be right.
“Ducey was sloppy toward the end of his administration, and there are serious questions on his allocation of these monies, but make no mistake, Abe is right about Hobbs and Mayes. They are heartless and lawless, and this is a strictly political move to pander to their base,” said one lobbyist, who asked to speak on the condition of anonymity.
Hobbs is hoping to use the $50-million grant for her pet projects.
“Classless and defamatory,” tweeted JP Twist, a former Ducey staffer, referring to Hobbs’ announcement. “The only accountability Hobbs cares about is to education bureaucrats and teachers’ unions. This is a slap in the face to AZ parents. We pay the taxes, we should get to pick the school!”
Classless and defamatory. The only accountability Hobbs cares about is to education bureaucrats and teachers unions. This is a slap in the face to AZ parents. We pay the taxes, we should get to pick the school! https://t.co/w8nbYMhRBZ
— J.P. Twist (@jp_twist) May 25, 2023