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Public Schools Are Facing
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Update: on Feb. 15, the House voted to allow schools to exceed the aritifical limit and spend the funds allocated to them. The Senate followed suit on Feb. 21. The focus now is to ensure that we do not repeat this every year. Call lawmakers; information linked below.The AZ Capitol Times called it a “Ticking Time Bomb.” If the State Legislature does not act by March 1, the constitutional spending limit for school districts requires schools to halt spending before the school year ends. |
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What is the Spending Cap?1980: Public School funding reform, introduced by voter-approved constitutional amendments, included capping school district spending at 1980 levels, adjusted for inflation and enrollment. Since then, the cap has been overridden or raised several times by voters or the Legislature. |
To download this Fact Sheet in English click here. Para ver esta página en español presione aquí. |
Crisis on the Horizon
Expenditure limit = $6 billion. Arizona school districts will exceed that by $1.1 billion in the current school year simply by spending the funds that the Legislature approved for this year’s education budget.
15-18% cut from the total yearly budget is approximately 80-90% of the funds districts have left to spend on April 1. That could result in widespread layoffs before the end of the school year.
>The Arizona Legislature must override the limit by March 1, or districts must make drastic cuts on April 1
Why We Reached the Spending Limit this YearNormal school spending limits, approved by the legislature, have been approaching the cap, reaching it in 2007 and coming close in recent years. Formula funding, alone, would exceed the cap this year. Other current issues exacerbate the problem:
>The Spending Cap crisis is not caused by Proposition 208. Those funds will not be in school budgets until next Fall. |
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The 1980 Spending Model is Unrealistic 2022 Schools are different than in 1980 when schools did not have computers, extensive campus security, advanced Special Education and other expectations that we place on schools today. 
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Only District Schools Will Be Affected Charter Schools and ESA vouchers are not subject to the cap, so while some schools might be making drastic cuts, others will be running business-as-usual. |
Arizona Schools are Not Overspending
This is the budget approved by the legislature last spring.
Arizona schools are at the bottom of states in per pupil funding -- 2019: 3rd lowest state for per pupil expenditures. Lowest when adjusted for cost of living.(Education Law Center Analysis of 2019 Census data )
>With this self-imposed spending cap, Arizona schools are trapped at the bottom.
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Examples of potential budget cuts: Phoenix Union $45 million Find your school district in this analysis of budget losses by the Arizona School Boards Association. |
How Does The Legislature Fix This?
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Immediate Action:
The Legislature must pass a bill by March 1 to exempt schools from the spending cap to avert disaster. -
Long-term Fix:
We will have this problem each year unless we remove the constitutional spending cap.
Urge your legislator to send the constitutional amendment to the ballot by Legislative Referral.
ACTION: Call your Legislators.
Enact a long-term Fix: We will have this problem each year unless we remove the constitutional spending cap. Urge your legislator to send the constitutional amendment to the ballot by Legislative Referral.