Vote NO on Proposition 320 this November 3.
Learn More about Prop. 320
Every Arizona child deserves a well-funded public school with qualified teachers and the best environment needed to learn, stay safe and succeed. Strong public schools also prepare Arizona’s future workforce, support working families and help communities and the state’s economy thrive.
Prop. 320 imposes an arbitrary, one-size-fits-all spending formula on certain school districts — even though students, schools and communities have very different needs. Arizona’s schools and communities are not interchangeable. If a district is spread out over hundreds of miles, its transportation costs are higher. In districts with high percentages of students with disabilities, its special education costs are higher. Locally elected school boards must retain the flexibility to build transparent budgets around students’ needs — but Prop. 320 strips that right.
Worse, Prop. 320 doesn’t add one cent to school budgets, meaning districts that can’t meet this arbitrary mark will be forced to make massive cuts to student services and school safety — punishing our children by depriving them of resources and supports.
Those supporting Prop. 320 say they want to raise teacher pay and cut administrative spending, but this poorly constructed measure put on the ballot by sneaky politicians doesn’t accomplish either of those goals. In fact, districts that cannot meet the 60% threshold due to high special education costs or transportation need would lose funding from its Classroom Site Fund — the very fund schools use for teacher base pay and performance pay.
Prop. 320 claims to help teachers, but its penalty could take away the very funding schools use to support them.
Be warned: Prop. 320 would lead to massive cuts to critical services that don’t count as “direct instruction,” like safety and security, counselors, speech pathologists, librarians, sports, nurses, social workers, transportation, technology support, building maintenance, and food service. This is bad for children, our communities, and our economy.
Students with disabilities and other specialized needs depend on coordinated services beyond the classroom teacher.
Safe, functioning and well-maintained buildings are a prerequisite for learning — and increase our property values and community safety
Sports, extracurriculars, counselors, intervention programs, and other support staff help students remain engaged and graduate.
Teachers are less able to focus on instruction when schools lack the staff and infrastructure supporting their classrooms.
A student cannot learn effectively if a health, mental health or safety need goes unmet.
Transportation determines whether many children can get to school consistently.
When schools cannot meet students’ needs, the consequences extend to our communities and Arizona’s economy:
Working parents depend on reliable, safe and functioning public schools that can meet their children’s needs
Employers depend on Arizona schools to prepare the state’s future workforce
Strong, safe communities have strong, safe schools to attract and retain families and businesses
Weakening educational opportunity can reduce economic mobility, deepen inequality and undermine Arizona’s ability to compete for jobs and investment
Bottom line: Arizona’s economic future depends on schools that can educate and support the whole child, not merely satisfy an accounting ratio that punishes children.
The solution: Arizona should adequately fund its public schools, and educators and locally elected school boards should retain the flexibility to make transparent budget decisions based on their communities’ needs. Those decisions should not be dictated by politicians at the state capitol. State education policy should strengthen teacher pay, classroom instruction and student-support services together — not force underfunded schools to take resources from one essential need to cover another.
Accountability should help schools improve, but Prop. 320 instead takes resources away from schools and students when they are already struggling to satisfy its mandate. Punishing schools will only hurt teachers and students.