by David Safier
Fine the Governor if the Arizona legislature doesn’t meet the April 15 ELL funding deadline? That sounds grossly unfair. And yet . . .
The attorney for the parents suing over ELL funding says Napolitano could do more to move this thing forward, even though the actual funding is the responsibility of the legislature. The lawyer claims, “Whether for political reasons or otherwise, the governor clearly has not done everything she could to bring Arizona into compliance with the court’s order.”
I find myself agreeing with the lawyer, even though I think it’s unfair to put the blame on Napolitano. She is playing politics with this. Janet wants the funding, but as she does so often, she’s triangulating, avoiding taking a strong stand so she doesn’t alienate anyone.
And let’s talk about unfair. The suit over ELL funding was filed in 1992, and in 2000, the courts ruled for the children. The state government has stalled ever since. If we’re going to weigh what’s fair and unfair, I’d say 16 years of children denied an adequate education outweighs a fine on the Governor.
Don’t tell these families to be patient. They should pull out all the stops to educate their children. If that means suing Janet to move things forward, I say, do it!