By Kiera Riley | State Affairs
The Empowerment Scholarship Account program could see a list of new regulations aimed at student safety, fraud prevention, income limits and academic testing under a new ballot measure introduced by the Arizona Education Association and Save Our Schools Arizona.
Legislative and administrative attempts to curtail or tinker with the ESA program have by-and-large been unsuccessful, but the ballot measure picks up where many proposed revisions have left off.
“The Legislature could pass these desperately needed reforms tomorrow to keep kids safe, ensure they’re learning, and improve the financial accountability of our taxpayer dollars,” said Beth Lewis, executive director of Save Our Schools Arizona. “However, the Legislature has obstinately refused to add any guardrails to the program for three years, leading to massive fraud, waste and unsafe situations for kids.”
Per the proposal, all schools receiving ESA dollars would be required to adhere to local fire and safety codes, conduct background checks on educators and staff, maintain safe storage of heavy machinery and weapons, and prohibit drugs and alcohol on school campuses.
Private schools would also be required to maintain fingerprint clearance cards for anyone with unsupervised contact with children and to investigate allegations of misconduct.
