In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

  • Arizona
  • Davíd G. Martínez (bio)

funding priorities for p-12 and/or higher education

Since the Great Recession, the Arizona Legislature and Governor Doug Ducey have attempted to address educational revenue cuts, including district additional assistance (DAA)/charter additional assistance (CAA), through legislative resolutions. From FY 2009 to FY 2018, Arizona cut $352,442,700 in DAA funding and $18,656,000 in CAA funding and has yet to fully replace this funding. The SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic further hurt state revenue, and the impending shortfall will likely impact educational review. These recessionary funding cuts, and Arizona's consistent educational austerity, put pressure on Arizona's educational community to operate without the necessary resources to provide all students an equitable educational opportunity. The current legislative session is no exception. Arizona's 54th Legislature, 2nd Regular Session, adjourned Sine Die at 12:21 AM May 26, 2020, without sufficiently addressing the impending challenges related to COVID-19.

changes to funding formula for p-12 and/or higher education

The state's school funding formula for FY 2021 incorporates the following changes. There is a 3.74 percent base level adjustment, as well as increases in transportation funds from 2.69 to 2.74 if traveling 0.5 miles or less, from 2.20 to 2.24 if travelling from 0.5 to 1 mile, and finally from 2.69 to 2.74 if travelling more than 1 mile.

pressing state issues affecting p-12 and/or higher education funding

The most pressing issue in education across Arizona is the impending revenue shortfall due to the impact of COVID-19. Arizona is expected to lose $700,000,0001 in revenue, and despite this decrease, the Governor has not called for a special session in response. Despite impending losses due to COVID-19, Arizona's Governor Doug Ducey proposed a total state budget of $12,499,108,900, with an adjusted base revenue of $11,821,260,2002. In his budget, Governor Ducey proposed $258,235,000 in baseline education funding, and $214,295,000 for new education initiatives, and a total education budget of $5,672,715,000 in FY 2021. The FY 2021 budget also includes $131,700,000 [End Page 246] dollars for K-12 inflationary adjustment, and $124,500,000 for teacher salary increases3.

For higher education, the Governor's proposed budget includes $358,248,000 in total support for Arizona State University, $227,213,000 in total support for the University of Arizona, and $124,018,000 in total support for Northern Arizona University. Funding for Arizona's Community Colleges has decreased drastically, including the FY 2020 one time appropriation of $35,000,000, and new equalization aid totalling $2,600,000. This cut will invariably impact how the Community Colleges operate, and with the pending impact of COVID-19 still expected, Arizona's Community Colleges may need more support from legislation to sufficiently address the needs of its students.

During the legislative session, the general assembly passed several bills related to education. Among the bills passed by the legislation, House Bill (HB) 2909/Senate Bill (SB) 1692 is worth highlighting, the general appropriations act allocates $5,357,829,000 in total appropriations to the Superintendent of Public Instruction, which includes $4,037,459,800 in basic student aid4. HB 2902/SB 1685 increases per-pupil base funding levels by $155.30 in FY 2021 from $4,150.43 to $4,305.735. There are also decreases to DAA funding from $128,734,900 to $64,367,400. HB 2909/SB 1692 also includes $955,591,200 to Arizona State University, $534,776,100 to the University of Arizona, and $256,244,600 to Northern Arizona University. This bill further includes an appropriation of $56,381,100 for Arizona's Community Colleges.

exclusive to p-12 : what are the alternatives to traditional public school offered by your state? what does the trend in funding look like for these alternatives?

COVID-19 will inevitably have an impact on Arizona's educational revenue availability. It is not known how much of a decrease in revenue will occur due to the economic...

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