When Arizona passed the legislation that allowed for ♦️private (religious) school vouchers♦️
the program was projected to cost $65 million in 2024 and $125 million in 2025.
But the most recent estimates put that cost at a staggering $940 million per year,
more than 1,000 percent of the initial estimate.
The news of the cost overruns came just a few days after two of the program’s leaders resigned
A report last month from Brookings Institution, the nonpartisan policy think tank, found that Arizona’s program was disproportionately used by wealthy families
—even though it was designed to boost the academic achievement of students from families in underserved school districts.
As it turned out, families in the highest poverty areas were five times less likely than people in the wealthiest areas to use vouchers.