Arizona teacher walkout: Educators detail income-tax ballot proposal
Ricardo Cano
Leaders of a new ballot initiative that would raise income taxes on the wealthiest 1 percent of Arizonans to boost education funding said they are determined to let voters decide on the issue in November.
The Invest in Education Act initiative is the latest in a list of education-funding proposals that have been introduced as thousands of educators have walked out of classrooms in their fight to restore $1 billion in cuts to Arizona's public schools.
This proposal is the first to try to put the issue on the 2018 ballot — where Gov. Doug Ducey and numerous state lawmakers face re-election.
But it faces significant hurdles.
First, it must gather 150,642 valid signatures by July 5 to qualify for the ballot.
Then, if it succeeds, it is likely to face an opposition campaign.
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The Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry has already condemned the initiative and said it would fight it if it secures a spot on the ballot.
At a Monday morning news conference at the Capitol — where thousands of educators rallied in support of the #RedForEd effort — education leaders said they devised the plan out of urgency to address the state's teacher crisis.
Joshua Buckley, a Mesa high-school teacher who will chair the ballot effort and is president of the Mesa Education Association, said the initiative would provide a "dedicated and secure funding source" for Arizona's public schools.
"We’ve waited for the politicians to ... make education and our children a priority in this state," Buckley said. "But year after year, they failed us. So now, it’s our time to act.”
What the ballot measure would do
Here is what the Invest in Education Act initiative proposes:
- Raising the income tax rate by 3.46 percentage points on individuals who earn more than $250,000 or households that earn more than $500,000.
- Raising income rates by 4.46 percentage points on individuals who earn more than $500,000 or households that earn more than $1 million.
Buckley said the initiative is expected to bring in $690 million in new education funding. It designates 60 percent of new funds for teacher salaries and 40 percent for district and charter school operation and maintenance expenses.
It would allow funding to cover full-day kindergarten and pay raises for student-support personnel, backers said.
But the initiative alone would not bring enough money to address funding demands laid out by organizers of Arizona Educators United, the grass-roots group coordinating the statewide walkout.
The AEU group's demands include immediate 20 percent teacher pay raises, competitive pay for support staff and restoring about $1 billion in cuts to education funding made since the recession.
David Lujan, treasurer of the ballot campaign and director of the progressive-leaning Arizona Center for Economic Progress, said the coalition is raising money for "a very robust campaign all through November."
Lujan acknowledged it would likely require several millions of dollars for a successful campaign effort.
Signature collection begins
The campaign began collecting signatures at Monday's walkout rally at the Capitol. Teachers there were signing petitions at a table set up near the Capitol courtyard.
"It's basically tax the rich to pay teachers," organizer Carlos Garcia, of One Arizona, explained to a potential supporter visiting the table.
Garcia said the group had just picked up the petition sheets from the printer and set up the table. "They're still warm." He said people at the protests were "rushing" to sign them.
It was unclear Monday how much money leaders had raised for the Invest in Education Act. Lujan said the campaign would rely on volunteers, as well as paid signature-gatherers.
Protesters support the proposal
Hundreds of #RedForEd protesters — all clad in crimson — huddled around a podium at the Capitol Rose Garden on Monday morning as Lujan and Buckley announced the ballot effort.
The protesters cheered throughout the news conference as Lujan and Buckley described the structure of the initiative.
It was still unclear Monday who among the several groups that have been protesting low teacher pay might support the initiative.
The Arizona Education Association and Arizona Educators United group have referenced the possibility of a ballot initiative, though neither have formally signed on in support of the Invest in Education Act.
Joe Thomas, president of the Arizona Education Association, had said, "We are likely to support the effort."
Noah Karvelis, organizer with Arizona Educators United, said Friday afternoon that the group is "polling our site liaisons right now to see if they, and their campuses, support this initiative."
Lujan said Monday that the ballot initiative campaign did not consult Arizona Educators United organizers about the measure.
Karvelis did not respond to a request for comment Monday.
Beth Lewis, a Tempe teacher and chair of Save Our Schools Arizona, was among the people who stood beside Lujan and Buckley on Monday as they announced details.
The Save Our Schools group, formed to oppose the expansion of Arizona's voucher-style program for private schools, is notable for successfully mounting an underdog effort to put a referendum on the November ballot last summer.
“Our volunteers provided a lot of inspiration for the state of Arizona and I think those efforts can be replicated and expanded upon to bring real change here," Lewis said.
"I definitely think that Save Our Schools’ efforts have paved the way for work like this, and we’re really excited to activate our network of volunteers.”
Republic reporter Rebekah L. Sanders contributed to this article.
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