Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1546862
3 ADVOCATE | FALL 2026 ON THE BALLOT is year, the Arizona Legislature referred three anti-education measures to the ballot. Unlike ordinary legislation, ballot referrals require only a simple majority in the Arizona House and Senate, allowing lawmakers to bypass the Governor's veto and send proposals directly to voters. Two Wins, More to Come AEA Defeated HCR 2040 & HCR 2048 HCR 2040 was written and designed expressly to undermine AEA and other public-sector unions in Arizona by restricting our ability to bargain collectively and use school facilities to organize, even outside of school hours. It also would have prohibited members from having their union dues deducted from their paychecks, in essence telling educators how they can and cannot spend their own money. HCR 2040 would have been a major blow to AEA and our ability to advocate and organize on behalf of our members. Fortunately, the courts struck the measure from the ballot aer finding it violated the Arizona Constitution. HCR 2048 represented another attempt to interfere with educators and voters. It was written in a way that could have nullified the Protect Education Act: the citizen-led ballot measure backed by AEA to finally bring much-needed transparency and accountability to Arizona's billion-dollar ESA voucher program. More than 400,000 Arizonans signed petitions to put the Protect Education Act before voters. Ultimately, the Arizona Supreme Court decided to overturn the will of those Arizonans and removed the Protect Education Act from the ballot. Fortunately, HCR 2048 was also struck down by the courts. Together, HCR 2040 and HCR 2048 demonstrate just how far some legislators were willing to go to weaken educators' voices and protect an unaccountable voucher system. Why You Should Vote NO on Prop 320 Prop 320 remains on the November ballot, and Arizona educators should vote NO. Prop 320 (formerly SCR 1032) provides schools with no new funding. Not one additional dollar. Instead, it dictates how many school districts must spend money they already have. e measure would require covered districts to spend at least 60% of their operational expenditures on "direct instructional expenses" without defining what those expenses are. at means districts would be required to meet a state-mandated spending formula without even knowing today exactly which employees, programs and services will count toward that requirement. at could put critical school employees and student services at risk. Counselors, librarians, nurses, bus drivers, paraprofessionals, custodians and other education professionals all play an essential role in keeping schools running and supporting student success. Local school communities — not politicians at the Capitol — are best positioned to determine how to use limited resources to meet their students' needs. And Prop 320 comes with a punishment. Districts that fail to meet the mandate could lose their Classroom Site Fund that helps support educator salaries, performance pay and other education-related expenses. At a time when Arizona continues to struggle to recruit and retain qualified educators, threatening funding that helps pay school employees is the opposite of what our public schools need. Prop 320 does not raise educator pay. It does not reduce class sizes. It does not provide schools with additional resources. It simply gives the state more control over how local schools spend already-inadequate funding and threatens to take funding away when districts cannot comply. Arizona educators and students deserve investment, not another unfunded mandate. Vote NO on Prop 320. Vote Out Anti-Education Legislators While AEA defeated HCR2040 and HCR2048 this year, an anti- public education majority could revive these initiatives in 2028 and beyond. e surest way to prevent anti-public education ballot referrals in the future is to elect pro-public education majorities in both the Arizona House and Senate. is year's election in November is the best opportunity voters have to elect those majorities to prevent bad ballot measures and finally take seriously the challenges facing Arizona's public schools and public school educators. VOTE NO ON PROP 320