Did you ever wonder why AZ continues to vote for clowns and jokers? I've got your answer right here. It would have been nice if they had put that 1 cent education tax we voted for, to actually pay for education instead using it to close the budget shortfall.
Study: Arizona 1st in cuts to schools
The deepest state-funding cuts to education in the nation over the past five years were in Arizona, a new study has found.
The 21.8 percent drop in funding from fiscal 2008 to fiscal 2013 is all the more reason voters should support a continuation of the 1-cent-per-dollar sales tax that expires in May, say supporters of Proposition 204.
"Where we are is not sustainable, if we want to have a successful economy," said Ann-Eve Pedersen, chairwoman of the Quality Education and Jobs initiative.
The Washington, D.C.-based Center for Budget and Policy Priorities study ranked Arizona slightly worse than Alabama in state-funding decreases in recent years. In raw dollars, Arizona was sixth out of 48 states for the biggest drop in per pupil spending, down $783 from fiscal 2008 to fiscal 2013.
The left-leaning think tank looked at 48 states that had data that could be compared historically; Hawaii and Indiana did not fit the group's criteria.
The cuts occurred as the states plunged into recession-driven budget crises. The study concluded that even as the nation is recovering, most state education budgets aren't keeping pace.
For example, Arizona was one of 22 states to increase its spending this year from last year. Arizona increased spending by $5. Other states had bigger increases, such as neighboring Utah, with a $40 bump, and Minnesota, with the largest increase of $531 per student. The state is spending $3,887 per student this year, according to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. When local and federal funds and the education-equalization formula, which comes from county-level property taxes, are added in, the figure is $5,244.
Proposition 204 would pick up where Gov. Jan Brewer's temporary sales tax for schools left off. Brewer sold voters on a three-year increase to 6.6 cents on the dollar to help bridge budget problems.
Peoria parent Ginger McLamb said she is backing a permanent jump in the tax because recent cuts, coupled with legislative requirements for reforms such as tighter reading standards, have taken too heavy a toll on her children's schools.
Proposition 204 would raise $800 million to $1 billion a year, with about 80 percent of it earmarked for education, from kindergarten through universities. It would bar lawmakers from controlling the funds, and would block their ability to cut the current level of education funding.
News 
Market Data 
Discover 
