Arizona judge delays trial in fight over education funding

Top Stories & Analysis

A lawsuit over how much money Arizona’s lawmakers allocate for school maintenance, buses, textbooks and technology won’t go to trial next week, after a judge granted a request for a delay by the state’s incoming attorney general.

Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes said her office needs time to determine whether some or all of the claims can be resolved without a trial.

The trial was set to begin Monday. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Dewain Fox approved Mayes’ request Friday and scheduled a status hearing for March 17, the Arizona Republic reported.

A group of school districts and associations representing school officials and teachers sued the state in 2017. They argued that the Legislature had shorted them billions of dollars in capital funding for more than a decade.

The lawsuit sought a declaration that Arizona’s school funding scheme was unconstitutional because it violated the “uniform and general” clause of the state Constitution. The state Supreme Court ruled in 1994 that it is the state’s responsibility to provide cash for new schools, major maintenance and things like textbooks. The Legislature began cutting that spending during the Great Recession of 2007-2009.

Mayes has said in recent filings that the state will no longer argue that the capital funding system is beyond the purview of the courts or that districts need to prove that specific students didn’t receive an adequate education due to their school’s capital facilities.

Kim Martin, a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office, said Friday that the case has already cost the state millions of dollars and the hope is that an agreement can be reached with the plaintiffs.

Attorney Danny Adelman is executive director of the Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest, which is helping litigate the case. He’s hopeful that incoming Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs can address some of the concerns through executive actions.

Related listings

  • Court: Health care workers in lawsuit must reveal identities

    Court: Health care workers in lawsuit must reveal identities

    Top Stories & Analysis 07/12/2022

    Nine health care workers who sued Democratic Maine Gov. Janet Mills over the state’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate have until Money to reveal their identities.The workers have so far remained anonymous, but on Thursday, a federal appeals court in Bo...

  • No state charge for billionaire Sanford in child porn probe

    No state charge for billionaire Sanford in child porn probe

    Top Stories & Analysis 05/28/2022

    The South Dakota attorney general’s office has declined to file charges against billionaire T. Denny Sanford following an investigation into possible possession of child pornography, saying it found no “prosecutable offenses” within...

  • Pakistani court orders probe into ex-minister’s arrest

    Pakistani court orders probe into ex-minister’s arrest

    Top Stories & Analysis 05/22/2022

    A court in Pakistan’s capital has ordered an investigation into the controversial arrest of a former human rights minister over a decades old land dispute.Chief Justice Ather Minallah of the Islamabad High Court late Saturday ordered the probe ...

Illinois Work Injury Lawyers – Krol, Bongiorno & Given, LTD.

Accidents in the workplace are often caused by unsafe work conditions arising from ignoring safety rules, overlooking maintenance or other negligence of those in management. While we are one of the largest firms in Illinois dedicated solely to the representation of injured workers, we pride ourselves on the personal, one-on-one approach we deliver to each client.

Work accidents can cause serious injuries and sometimes permanent damage. Some extremely serious work injuries can permanently hinder a person’s ability to get around and continue their daily duties. Factors that affect one’s quality of life such as place of work, relationships with friends and family, and social standing can all be taken away quickly by a work injury. Although, you may not be able to recover all of your losses, you may be entitled to compensation as a result of your work injury. Krol, Bongiorno & Given, LTD. provides informed advocacy in all kinds of workers’ compensation claims, including:

• Injuries to the back and neck, including severe spinal cord injuries
• Serious head injuries
• Heart problems resulting from workplace activities
• Injuries to the knees, elbows, shoulders and other joints
• Injuries caused by repetitive movements

For Illinois Workers’ Compensation claims, you will ALWAYS cheat yourself if you do not hire an experienced attorney. When you hire Krol, Bongiorno & Given, Ltd, you will have someone to guide you through the process, and when it is time to settle, we will add value to your case IN EXCESS of our fee. In the last few years, employers and insurance carriers have sought to advance the argument that when you settle a case without an attorney, your already low settlement should be further reduced by 20% so that you do not get a “windfall.” Representing yourself in Illinois is a lose-lose proposition.