May 25, 2023
PHOENIX, Ariz. – The Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest sent a cease and desist letter today to the office of Arizona State Treasurer Kimberly Yee objecting to a planned use of federal COVID relief monies to fund a program that violates the law.
On January 1, 2023, in the waning hours of the Ducey Administration, officials secretly entered into an agreement with the Treasurer’s Office to provide $50 million of American Rescue Plan Act funds to supplement money already provided to families receiving Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) funding. The effect of this program would be to fund all-day kindergarten for private schools, even though Arizona funds only half-day kindergarten for children attending public schools.
According to the Interagency Service Agreement, an extra $3,500 is designated to be provided to families already receiving ESA funding. Students entering private kindergarten over the next three years would be eligible. The program would provide nearly twice as much funding for those students compared to what the state provides to public school students.
“The Ducey/Yee Agreement tries to justify this outrageous action by claiming the program will ‘address educational disparities,’” said ACLPI Executive Director Danny Adelman. “But this program does not address disparities. It just takes money that could actually be used to help people who were most affected by the pandemic, and uses it to provide a special gift for families who send their kids to private schools.”
In the letter sent to Yee, the Center says this planned expenditure violates federal law governing the use of ARPA funding, as well as other constitutional prohibitions.
The Center gave Yee’s office a deadline of June 9 to agree to voluntarily terminate the grant program and said absent an assurance the COVID funds will not be dispersed in this manner, it will consider all options, including suing the Treasurer to prevent an illegal expenditure of public monies.
“Attempting to set up this unjust and illegal boondoggle will expose Arizona to action by the federal government to claw back any money spent, which will only reduce the state’s scarce public resources even further,” said Adelman.
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The Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest is a nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to ensuring government accountability and protecting Arizonans’ legal rights. The Center defends the civil and legal rights of Arizonans, pursuing cases with social, public health and environmental impacts statewide. Standing up for all citizens, the Center holds government and special interests accountable.
