The 'Kochtopus' Death Star seeks to privatize education for profit

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

David Safier has posted about the plans of the "Kochtopus" Death Star, the Goldwater Institute, to "voucherize", i.e., privatize education in Arizona for profit. "Vouchers on steroids" for all!.

This is a clear violation of the Arizona Constitution which prohibits state funding to private and parochial schools:

Article 2, Section 12: "No public money or property shall be appropriated for or applied to any religious worship, exercise, or instruction, or to the support of any religious establishment."

Article 11, Section 7: "No sectarian instruction shall be imparted in any school or state educational institution that may be established under this Constitution, and no religious or political test or qualification shall ever be required as a condition of admission into any public educational institution of the state, as teacher, student, or pupil;"

Several years ago, the Goldwater institute convinced the Arizona Supreme Court to accept a sort of "straw man exchange" argument common in real estate transactions to uphold tax credits that supported private and parochial schools. The argument was that the money went to the parents, not directly from the state to the schools, and thus did not violate the constitutional provisions above. The legal fiction created by the Court was in error, but established a legal precedent that the Goldwater Institute has been trying to exploit ever since.

If successful, the "Kochtopus" Death Star could nullify the above constitutional provisions without ever submitting a repeal to the voters by employing the legal fiction previously accepted by the Court. That would mean the death of public education in Arizona at the hands of Republicans who want to privatize education for profit.

Comments

[David Safier]

You mention that a court ruling "could nullify the above constitutional provisions without ever submitting a repeal to the voters." True, and there's a reason the Republicans won't submit this to voters. Vouchers have never been put in place by the voters. Never. They're voted down every time. So the only way Republicans can get their beloved vouchers is to subvert the will of the people, push this "voucher on steroids" program as well as the Tuition Tax Credits though the legislature and hope they can convince the courts that back-door and pseudo vouchers don't violate the constitution.