Temperatures are not the only things heating up in Arizona.
There is also the debate over a new proposal involving Empowerment Scholarship Accounts or vouchers and Proposition 123.
Approved by voters in May 2016, Proposition 123 allows Arizona to use a portion of land trust revenue to direct more funding to public schools without raising taxes. Final language of the new proposal is still being drafted, but state Sen. JD Mesnard, R-Chandler, said it would go before voters and “ensure a few things” for the people of Arizona.
“One, we want to protect school choice, as that is something that Arizona has become the gold standard in,” Mesnard told The Center Square. “We want to make sure families are protected because they’ve been a target recently from some on the left, and in addition, we want to see a significant increase in teacher pay.”
In Arizona, an Empowerment Scholarship Account is an account administered by the state Department of Education. It is funded by state tax dollars to provide education options for students who qualify for an ESA.
Nearly 88,000 students in Arizona are enrolled in ESAs.
