Exclusive—Steve Montenegro: Arizona Republicans Will Protect School Choice Against Democrat Katie Hobbs’ Constant Attacks

Arizona is the premier state for school choice in America. In addition to open enrollment policies and the nation’s highest usage of charter schools, Arizona is the only state with a truly universal Empowerment Scholarship Account or ESA. Through ESA, each family may direct 90 percent of their state education funding to a school of their choice or to use for homeschooling.

More than 80,000 students are happily using Arizona’s ESA. It’s unfortunate that these families live in constant frustration with Arizona Democrat Gov. Katie Hobbs’ constant attacks on the ESA program. As the newly elected Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives, let me be clear: none of Gov. Hobbs’ plans for the ESA program will come to fruition.

One of the main pillars of the newly elected Arizona House majority is to preserve the American dream. For Arizona House Republicans, that means amplifying and protecting school choice. Our vision is that each Arizona family makes a personal decision for their child, further empowering their educational journey and tailoring it to each respective child’s needs.

In year three of her administration, Gov. Hobbs has shifted her attack on the ESA program after repeated failures. In 2023, she proposed eliminating universal ESA. Last year, she demanded a bizarre requirement that a child first spend 90 days in a public school before qualifying. Now, she wants to kick middle class families off the program through implementation of a means testing model.

Education is not welfare. Arizona students should not see their educational options suffer when their parents earn a pay raise at work. Parents who opt into the ESA program pay taxes just like everyone else. According to the governor’s proposal, a family of four with a total household income of $100,000 would lose funding.

Her budget proposal impacts an estimated 21,000 kids and would disqualify 9,000. This is unacceptable and will not happen as long as I am Speaker.

Hobbs’ folly on ESA reminds me of Proverbs 15:32: “If you refuse to learn, you are hurting yourself. If you accept correction, you will become wiser.” I’d invite the governor to accept that ESA is a part of the fabric of Arizona’s robust education system. She will not win by launching her war on kids and parents; and furthermore, she has demonstrated that she’s oblivious to the many successes that have been achieved since passage of universal school choice.

Instead, House Republicans will focus on continuous improvement of ESA administration. We meet regularly with the Department of Education to voice feedback from families. As a growing program, ESA can be improved to be more efficient. We were proud in last year’s legislative session to secure improvements to the process of reviewing purchases. Parents can now enjoy a streamlined process with risk-based audits.

There are few things we care about more than stamping out fraud. We’re proud to report that the ESA program has been found to have very little of it. If we identify any fraud, we move swiftly against bad actors that would steal money from taxpayers. We will continue to protect the program through fraud prevention efforts while finding ways to make it work better for families, schools, and vendors.

ESA parents should be proud of the trail they are helping to blaze. Arizona remains a national leader in school choice, as the work of making this program a success continues. I sincerely hope this message brings families a sense of peace, knowing the governor’s plans for ESA are unserious and of no interest to the Arizona House of Representatives.

Steve Montenegro is the Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives and serves Legislative District 29 in the West Valley, Goodyear, and Surprise. Follow him on X at @SteveMontenegro.