The Arizona officials responsible for managing the state’s investments must dole out the millions of dollars owed to schools from the recently-passed Proposition 123, unless a court tells them otherwise.
On Wednesday, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich issued an opinion spelling out the responsibilities of the board of investment in response to a query from State Treasurer Jeff DeWitt about the legality of distributing the extra money.
Jeff DeWitt led the fight against Gov. Doug Ducey's education funding initiative, contending, among other things, that schools could not pull more money out of the state land trust without Congressional approval.
Because that is already the subject of a lawsuit, Brnovich would not comment. But he did say that the state board of investment, chaired by DeWitt, must follow the constitution, which now has been amended due to Prop 123. That is, unless a court intercedes.
“The Board cannot ignore the constitutional amendment created by Proposition 123, including the provisions related to continued distribution of monies to charter schools,” according to the opinion.
Another question raised by DeWitt was whether charter schools were eligible to receive money from the land trust. That too, Brnovich said, the board must go ahead and give out.
“Charter schools have received monies from these trust funds for 21 years. Proposition 123 does not compel the Board to overturn more than two decades of pattern and practice in this area due to the nature of the beneficiary,” stated the opinion.
The ballot measure requires more than $250 million go to schools by the end of June.
