Arizona judge delays trial in fight over education funding

Politics

A lawsuit over how much money Arizona’s lawmakers allocate for school maintenance, buses, textbooks and technology won’t go to trial next week, after a judge granted a request for a delay by the state’s incoming attorney general.

Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes said her office needs time to determine whether some or all of the claims can be resolved without a trial.

The trial was set to begin Monday. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Dewain Fox approved Mayes’ request Friday and scheduled a status hearing for March 17, the Arizona Republic reported.

A group of school districts and associations representing school officials and teachers sued the state in 2017. They argued that the Legislature had shorted them billions of dollars in capital funding for more than a decade.

The lawsuit sought a declaration that Arizona’s school funding scheme was unconstitutional because it violated the “uniform and general” clause of the state Constitution. The state Supreme Court ruled in 1994 that it is the state’s responsibility to provide cash for new schools, major maintenance and things like textbooks. The Legislature began cutting that spending during the Great Recession of 2007-2009.

Mayes has said in recent filings that the state will no longer argue that the capital funding system is beyond the purview of the courts or that districts need to prove that specific students didn’t receive an adequate education due to their school’s capital facilities.

Kim Martin, a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office, said Friday that the case has already cost the state millions of dollars and the hope is that an agreement can be reached with the plaintiffs.

Attorney Danny Adelman is executive director of the Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest, which is helping litigate the case. He’s hopeful that incoming Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs can address some of the concerns through executive actions.

Related listings

  • Supreme Court weighs ‘most important case’ on democracy

    Supreme Court weighs ‘most important case’ on democracy

    Politics 12/04/2022

    The Supreme Court is about to confront a new elections case, a Republican-led challenge asking the justices for a novel ruling that could significantly increase the power of state lawmakers over elections for Congress and the presidency.The court is ...

  • Idaho Supreme Court won’t reconsider death row clemency case

    Idaho Supreme Court won’t reconsider death row clemency case

    Politics 10/25/2022

    The Idaho Supreme Court says it will not reconsider the clemency case of a terminally ill man who is facing execution for his role in the 1985 slayings of two gold prospectors near McCall.The high court made the decision Friday in Gerald Ross Pizzuto...

  • Bench trial for a man accused of killing 2 women in Phoenix

    Bench trial for a man accused of killing 2 women in Phoenix

    Politics 10/02/2022

    A bench trial is scheduled to begin Monday for a man accused of sexually attacking and fatally stabbing two young women in separate killings nearly 30 years ago near a metro Phoenix canal system.Bryan Patrick Miller, 49, is charged with two counts ea...

New Rochelle, New York Personal Injury Lawyers

If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident, contact Kommer, Bave & Ollman, LLP, in New Rochelle, New York, immediately. We can answer all your questions and work with you to determine if you have the grounds for a personal injury lawsuit. The attorneys at our firm are determined to resolve even the most difficult of cases. We will work closely with you to determine the best course of action to get your claim or case resolved in the most efficient way possible. We will fight for your right to compensation! No one should have to suffer a financial burden from the result of another person’s carelessness. The attorneys at Kommer, Bave & Ollman, LLP will aggressively fight to ensure that justice is served on your behalf.