The building blocks of controversy
The Arizona AG's Office is investigating ADE over the state's ESA program ... and LEGOs.
The Arizona Attorney General's Office is investigating the Arizona Department of Education's Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) Program, citing concerns about the misuse of public funds.
In a letter on July 1, Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Boughton highlighted issues such as the approval of supplementary materials and textbooks without proper documentation linking them to an approved curriculum.
This practice raises the risk of potential fraud, the letter says. The AG's Office has directed ADE to cease these practices immediately, develop a compliance plan, and provide detailed records of ESA fund expenditures from 2019 to 2024.
John Ward, executive director of the ESA Program, acknowledged the concerns in a July 3 response letter and committed to halting the approval of undocumented materials. ADE will inform ESA holders of the new requirements, update the ESA Parent Handbook, and respond to the AG's queries within 60 days.
This investigation underscores the need for stringent oversight and transparent use of public funds in the ESA Program, aiming to ensure compliance with statutory requirements and prevent misuse of educational resources.
Under question, though the AG’s letter doesn’t go into specifics, is parents who have spent more than $1 million in totality for LEGOs all at the expense of taxpayers, which SOS Arizona found through a public records request.
The records show high-cost sets such as an $1,800 Star Wars model.
In an ironic turn, Horne had accused SOS Arizona of lying about the Lego purchases, doing so on state letterhead, but records from his own office showed he was wrong. To my knowledge, Horne has not apologized for his accusation of lying1.
Public records got to the bottom of it. You can see those records in full here. They cover purchases from April 2023 - January 2024.
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