Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account families have another reason to celebrate this holiday weekend after the Goldwater Institute defeated Attorney General Kris Mayes’ specious two-year crusade targeting their ability to buy basic school supplies like pencils and kids’ books for their children.
Mayes finally waved the white flag two years after launching her attack on Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) school choice families.
On July 1, 2024, Mayes’ office issued a directive threatening litigation against the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) if it did not immediately begin forcing ESA parents to justify every ESA purchase made for their kids—no matter how obviously educational in nature.
This meant that parents such as Velia Aguirre—who purchased items like the children’s classic Where the Red Fern Grows, a poster of the periodic table of elements, and a box of pencils—had their purchases rejected for failing to meet Mayes’ arbitrary demand that they explain why each item was purchased with specific curriculum documentation.
The Goldwater Institute stepped in to represent Velia and the interests of all ESA families, and sued to block this unlawful mandate, which had no support in statute. Moreover, Mayes’ mandate directly violated the State Board of Education’s approved ESA Handbook, which explicitly permits families to purchase obviously educational materials without further documentation.
But Mayes’ office dug in, declaring that for every purchase of a supplementary material: “The parent must submit the underlying curriculum to ADE along with a reasonable explanation of how the item is connected to the curriculum.” (emphasis added)
Mayes’ office took the mandate to its logical extreme, demanding that parents justify even purchases as obviously educational as a box of pencils, one by one. Mayes’ office provided an example explanation parents could use: “These pencils support my student’s second-grade math curriculum because they will allow him to practice writing out fractions.”
Now, after subjecting ESA parents to this bureaucratic abomination for two years, Mayes’ office has finally withdrawn its demands, conceding that: “ESA holders shall not be required to submit a specific curriculum document when purchasing items identified as ‘general educational supplemental materials’ in the 2025–2026 ESA Handbook.”
This means no more manufactured paperwork from parents simply to appease the bureaucratic whims of politicians. No more wasted hours explaining why hundreds of individual items, like pencils or children’s literature, are necessary for a child’s education.
Instead, parents will simply acknowledge via a single check box for a purchase order or reimbursement request that the purchases are intended to support the course of study for an ESA student. What was once the needless compounding of minutes into hours to comply with the attorney general’s demands will now be two clicks of a mouse.
The Goldwater Institute will continue to fight for the rights of ESA families against attacks by politicians and political activists. We are proud to stand with brave ESA parents like Velia Aguirre and will ensure that the ESA program continues to thrive and serve Arizona children into the future.
To read more about the case, click here. To read the settlement agreement now in force with the State of Arizona, click here.
Matt Beienburg is the Director of Education Policy at the Goldwater Institute.
