(UPDATED) With Regards to Invest in Ed, What Part of The People Have Spoken do the Republicans in the State Legislature Not Understand

Most Republicans in the Arizona State Legislature are warring against Democracy on several fronts.

Not only are they endeavoring to enact measures designed to suppress the vote, but they are also advancing proposals to circumvent the will of the people at the ballot box.

Senate Bill (SB) 1783 is the latest example of this.

This measure, sponsored by Legislative District 17 State Senator J.D. Mesnard would allow individuals or families that make over a certain amount to receive a 4.5 percent tax cut if they can qualify as a small business.

Why this should matter to fans of Democracy and public education is the revenues lost if this tax cut would come out of the funds earmarked for Proposition 208-Invest in Ed.

A fiscal analysis of SB 1783 estimated that if this bill became law, at least 50 percent of the prospective funds meant for Proposition 208 distribution could be diverted to give another tax cut to the rich.

Josselyn Berry, the spokesperson for the Arizona Senate Democrats, said the percentage because the estimates vary, could perhaps be as high as eighty percent.

This is an outrage.

The people of Arizona voted in the November elections to increase the funding of public schools by passing Proposition 208.

They did this because Republicans in the State Legislature and the Governor’s office have year after year since the Great Recession failed to fully fund public schools.

They have also failed to adequately fund community colleges and the three State Universities.

Now Republicans are trying to screw Arizonans the back door way by doing what they know best with regards to fiscal policy: pass a tax cut for people who do not need it.

Former Democratic Legislative Leader and head of the Arizona Center for Economic Progress David Lujan commented on the latest Republican maneuver:

“SB1783 has but one purpose: to help rich people avoid paying the surcharge established by Prop 208. Lawmakers who support this are ignoring the will of the nearly 1.7 million Arizonans who voted for Prop 208 to provide our public schools with the resources they desperately need to end our teacher shortage crisis and reduce class sizes. It is stunning that the lawmakers who are supporting this have done next to nothing to help the thousands of Arizonans and Arizona small businesses who are struggling through this health and economic crisis but they are pushing through a huge tax break for the richest one percent who are still doing quite well during this pandemic.”

SB1783 passed the State Senate Finance Committee on a party-line vote (six to four) on February 17, 2021.

Arizonans should contact their legislators and tell them not to vote against the will of the people.

They spoke last November and passed Invest in Ed-Proposition 208.

Legislators that are leaning toward voting for SB1783 should be told the voters will speak up again at the ballot box and cast votes against them in 2022 if they screw public schools again to help the rich.

UPDATE: The Arizona State Senate passed SB 1783 on a 16 to 14 party-line vote. Vote the people that cast ballots for this anti-education measure out.