Proposition 320 is not an investment in our public schools

Christine Marsh

Photo submitted by Christine Marsh

OPINION — Don’t be fooled. Proposition 320 is an attack on public education. It applies only to public district schools, not to charter schools or private schools accepting tax-funded vouchers.

Referred to the ballot by the Republican majority in the State Legislature, Prop 320 would take away local control and tie school boards in knots by requiring them to spend 60 percent of their dollars on “direct instructional expenses,” without defining that term for voters.

While Prop 320 might sound reasonable, it’s not. It only sounds reasonable until we realize Prop. 320 could force cuts to any or all of the following: school safety measures; sports programs; art, music, theater; transportation; food service; building maintenance and repairs; utilities; social workers and counselors; custodians; libraries and technology; groundskeeping; special education services; and administration. That’s a long list, and many of these expenses are fixed costs.

In the Scottsdale district, where I taught English for 26 years, Prop 320 would necessitate $14 million in cuts to expenses outside the classroom.

After years of underfunding our public schools, it is troubling that any legislator would attempt to micromanage how local districts craft their budgets. Worse, Republicans disguise Prop 320 as a way to raise teacher salaries. It won’t. Districts that fail to meet the 60 percent requirement could lose state funding, putting teacher salaries at risk.

If Republicans truly valued public education, Arizona would no longer rank last for funding K-12 public schools, teacher pay or class sizes, while having among the lowest administration costs in the nation.

What is needed instead is a recommitment to investing in public schools. It is essential to the future economy of our state and to the survival of our democracy.

Christine Marsh is a mother, foster mother and retired teacher with 32 years of experience. In 2016, she was named Arizona’s Teacher of the Year, and she traveled the state and saw firsthand the issues public schools face. She is a two-term senator and running for the State Senate in LD5. Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines.