Arizona Proposition 123 is bad for Arizona.
Surely you’ve seen the ads proclaiming Arizona’s Proposition 123 as a life saving, essential revenue infusion for schools. The ads claim it’s a way to support our schools and teachers without raising taxes. A no vote on Proposition 123 would leave our schools in disarray and underfunded for the foreseeable future. How could anyone who cares about our children’s education vote no?
There’s no doubt Arizona’s public school system is severely underfunded. Arizona currently ranks last in the nation for public school spending per student, and in the bottom 10 for all other categories. A revenue infusion is needed immediately.
What Proposition 123 backers aren’t telling you is, you’ve already paid for it and the money is already available in the State Fund. However, lawmakers would rather use that money to give corporations huge tax cuts, instead of what it was originally intended for…our children’s education.
A Brief History
In 2000, then Arizona Governor Jane Hull, and other Arizona leaders, used the same guilt trip to convince the voters to do the responsible thing and raise the State Sales Tax to properly fund schools. At the time Arizona Schools were severely underfunded and ranked near the bottom of the country in all school statistics. Sound familiar?
From the Arizona Auditor General Report (2002):
“In November 2000, voters approved Proposition 301, which increased the State’s sales tax from 5 percent to 5.6 percent to provide additional monies for educational programs. The tax is expected to produce $444 million in fiscal year 2002, of which over $261 million (59 percent) will be distributed to school districts, charter schools, and state schools.”
The proceeds of the sales tax hike were to fund public education. The proposition also created a base funding level tied to inflation, in order to insure the amount of money budgeted to schools would raise each year, avoiding future funding issues.
In 2008, Arizona and the rest of the nation was hit with the “Great Recession”. When confronted with tighter budgets and less state revenue, State Lawmakers decided to ignore the will of the voters and, began funneling money earmarked for education through Proposition 301 to other areas of the state budget.
In 2010, Arizona Schools sued the State of Arizona for not distributing the tax money to schools as the voters had directed them to do. The Courts agreed and ordered the state to pay the schools the money that was owed. The State appealed the decision all the way to the Arizona Supreme Court which agreed with the lower courts and ordered the State to pay Arizona Schools the $1.3 billion dollars that was withheld, against the clear mandate of the voters.
The “Settlement”
Instead of following the Court’s orders and giving the money to the schools as the voters intended through Proposition 301, the state has demanded a settlement. In the last legislative session, Governor Ducey, the legislature and the schools agreed that Proposition 123 would be the quickest settlement.
Even the strongest backers of the Proposition like Fred Duvall (former candidate for Governor), state publicly Proposition 123 isn’t a perfect nor complete fix to our school funding problem. The consensus of those affected, Lawmakers, The Governor and Teachers agree it’s more convenient to get money now instead of letting this drag out, even though the consequences down the road will be compounded many times over.
It should also be noted, the campaign for Proposition 123 is being funded by big business. To date, almost $4 million dollars in large donations have funded the advertising blitz. Two Arizona billionaires Bruce Halle, the founder of Discount Tire Company and GoDaddy.com Founder Bob Parsons donated $1 million dollars a piece to the campaign for it’s passage. Think about it, business people are smart, that’s how they got rich. If a business person spends $1 million dollars on something, they expect to get a much greater return, like say a big portion of that $600+ million currently sitting in the state’s general fund…via TAX BREAKS.
The opposition to Proposition 123 is minimally funded, but current Arizona State Treasurer Jeff Dewit and five former State Treasurers who have intricate knowledge of the State Land Trust and how it works, oppose Proposition 123. Below are the Arizona State Treasurers who have opposed Proposition 123.
(From left, current Arizona Treasurer Jeff DeWit; Dean Martin, treasurer from 2007-2010; Carol Springer, treasurer from 1999-2003; Ernest Garfield, treasurer from1971-1973; Morris Herring, treasurer from 1969-1971; and Bart Fleming, treasurer from 1973-1978. courtesy of azcentral.com)
Arizona Has The Money To Fully Fund Our Schools Now
According to Arizona State Treasurer, Jeff Dewit, “by the governor’s and the Legislature’s numbers, we have the money to fully fund the money owed to teachers without raiding the trust fund…We go up to a $1 billion surplus within a few years.”
Instead of solving the problem by using the money we’ve already paid, in the increased sales tax, currently sitting in the State’s General Fund, the Governor and State Lawmakers crafted this “settlement” called Proposition 123. Essentially, Arizona lawmakers want you let them keep the dollars you’ve already contributed to education (prop 301) as a slush fund to use however they choose and then write them a new blank check (Proposition 123), to drastically increase (by 300%) the yearly withdrawals from the State Land Trust.
Think of it this way. You have a 401k and you’ve got a big bill that needs to be paid. You can either pay with money you have in a savings account, or you can cash in a significant portion of your 401k to pay for it. Of course paying with your 401k makes no sense as you will be significantly decreasing it’s earning power over the long run. In the end you will end up paying many times more than if you had used the cash you already had on hand.
Proposition 123 works the same way. While it may be a quick fix to a long term problem, after proposition 123 expires 20 years from now, Arizona Schools will receive approximately $70-$100 million dollars per year less than they would have if we just took care of the problem now, with money we’ve already paid via increased sales taxes. It’s estimated that Arizona Schools could lose up to $8 billion dollars in funding over the next 40 years if Proposition 123 passes.
There’s Also No Guarantee This Money Will Be Used For Education
The authors of Proposition 123 must believe the voters in Arizona have no memory and have an undying trust in our Government. Just like Proposition 301, Proposition 123 has hidden language, called “triggers” that give our lawmakers yet another excuse to not use the money raised for education and instead funnel that money to other pet projects.
“These triggers include growth in sales tax and employment that each fall below 2 percent in a given year, allowing the legislature to decide to suspend the fund. If they each are less than 1 percent, the funding must be suspended.”
Arizona Leaders have already shown us we cannot trust them to do the right thing, and now they want you to give them permission to do it again!
The Solution
The only solution is a loud and clear NO vote on Proposition 123. Further, the citizens of Arizona should demand the State use the Proposition 301 Sales Tax money already collected to immediately fund the schools as the voters ordered.
Fool me once, shame on you…Fool me twice, shame on me. I promise you will not fool me a third time because another election is on the horizon and I will not forget which lawmakers tried to take the easy way out on the backs of the students of Arizona.
Reality Check 
State and Federal government need to stop subsidizing business and start providing the services that the funds were garnered for. There is no call for congress/senate and presidents to receive a pension for the balance of life just because they held an office. For gosh sakes stop jockeying police, fire, social security, military benefits and education funding in a effort for political gain. We have the TSA that has yet to stop any terrorism, the post office buying ammo and they don’t even carry any firearms. We get taxed to make money (federal and state), we get taxed to spend money (state/county), and were penalized when we have to access money we earned earlier than when the government says we should need it. When ACA went into effect it taxes us if we refuse to be extorted to buy health care that doesn’t cover hardly anything while the rates continue to climb and theres no accountability for the level of service.
The problem isn’t funding, it’s mismanagement of resources and greed by all the politicians that get funded by that same businesses that get the subsidies. We need to wake up and look at what we the people have been letting happen over the last 30+ years. We spend more time dwelling one the negative that the news continues perpetuate and not able to get the whole truth because the politicians and media spin their statements to skew the public to do what works best for them and not what is best for the people that work hard for the money and are continually forced to carry more of the burden all the while their voices continue to be squashed!
Wake up America! We have no good choice for president, we have no voice in congress, no voice with our senators, or even in our state government. We are spoon fed the “facts” that work best to get us to continue to line the politicians and big business pockets while stripping away more and more from the American people. We need to stop and look for the root of the problem and throw out those that are not working for the greater good of all americans. We need to seek out the problems, find the cause of the problems, work collectively to make changes. We really need to take a deep look at history, learn from the lessons of the past, don’t perpetuate the mistakes. Take what works and polish it, take what doesn’t work and learn from it. We need to take back our country, we need to reform our government, we need to be held accountable for our own actions and own the decisions we make and work collectively to change the fate of america and prove to the rest of the world that we, the United States of America, is still the best place on earth.
There is no problem if you want to come to the United States and become a citizen. If you work hard and assimilate to the culture you will be welcomed with open arms. I do not mean to forget your culture and values but you need to become a part of the nation that you wanted to come to, there is no free ride. The problem is not in trying to strip you of your heritage or cultural identity, its finding a balance and not forcing your ideals on those around you. When the United States was formed every immigrant worked hard for the opportunity that they left wherever they were from to have a better life here. They did not look for a handout, or free ride. They did whatever work they could to make an honest living, and worked harder to get ahead and make a better life for them and their family.
If we want to make America the beacon of hope it used to be around the world we need to look at where we lost our way, and find ways to make changes to become that great nation again. We have lost our way and if we don’t work at getting that back we will suffer the fate of every other super power in history, get too big, too top heavy and we will crumble under the inflated environment we allowed to be created. We need to change or we will go down in the history books as the greatest failure of any civilized nation.
~Jason J
Phoenix, AZ
LikeLike
Very well put indeed, and so glad to see the some people are awake, that gives me hope. I hope you don’t mind if I share this! Bravo!
LikeLike
Please do share. The sole reason I write this blog is to get the truth on issues like this in front of as many people as possible. Thanks!
LikeLike
Extremely well said, Jason J. Thank you!
LikeLike
I posted the following on April 24 in an effort to urge educators and other interested individuals to vote NO. I received numerous positive replies from fellow teachers, administrators, former students and friends. Did not hear from any politician.
Fred Hanley
April 24 at 5:05pm ·
Some teachers, many school administrators, most developers, and all near-sighted politicians appear to support Proposition 123. BAD IDEA. I urge everyone with foresight and a commitment to our future to vote “NO”. The whole thing is designed to satisfy short-term goals – such as temporarily keeping some taxes low – and making some of the wealthy even wealthier. All at the expense of sacrificing long term solutions to serious educational underfunding. Our taxes are not too high and our educational ambitions are way too low. “NO” on 123. … And “YES” on 124.
LikeLike
Prop 123 really is a double-edged sword, in my opinion. Yes means some (potentially) immediate short-term funding that AZ schools and teachers need. No means the possibility of better long-term funding solutions being worked out. Yes means a wide variety of groups win now and, maybe, semi-lose later. No means some win now, some lose now, but nothing changes. My biggest issue with a no on 123; who’s to say ANYTHING changes in the future? Who’s to say, using your analogy, we ever get to cash in that 401(k)? A yes on 123 is truly a settlement. Guess what? Sometimes a settlement is better than staring at “wall” (the establishment that has choked funding all these years) hoping it moves.
LikeLike