Phoenix: Arizona GOP Leaders Appeal Court Order That Could Freeze School Funding

Republican leaders at the Arizona Statehouse are asking the state Court of Appeals to block a judge's order that could force the state to freeze all public school funding by November.

The appeal marks the latest escalation in a long-running legal battle over how Arizona pays for its public schools. Senate President Warren Petersen and House Speaker Steve Montenegro are arguing that Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Dewain Fox exceeded his authority by ordering the Legislature to fix the state's school funding system.

A court order with billions at stake

Judge Fox issued an 114-page ruling in August declaring Arizona's school funding system unconstitutional. He found that many schools across the state lack basic resources. Some buildings have cracks and structural deficiencies. Others are missing required academic equipment like student computers. The judge also cited failures to fund legally mandated safety improvements, including protections against active shooter threats.

Fox did not prescribe a specific fix. Instead, he gave state lawmakers and the governor until early November to develop and fund a system that meets the state's own "minimum adequacy guidelines" for school facilities and equipment.

If the state misses that deadline, Fox said he could block the state treasurer from distributing any funds to K-12 schools. That would effectively shut down Arizona's public school system.

"Compliance with its edicts could require outlays totaling possibly in the billions," legislative attorneys wrote in their appellate court filings.

The fight over who decides

Lawmakers' attorneys are telling the Court of Appeals that education policy belongs exclusively to the Legislature, not the courts. They argue that judges should not set spending standards for schools.

"These funds do not materialize out of ether," the lawmakers' lawyers wrote. "They must either be extracted from the wallets of Arizona citizens and businesses or transferred away from other agencies and departments that provide vital health, safety, and social services."

The filing pointed to a $3.8 billion shortfall in building renewal funds that plaintiff districts cited during the trial. The entire state budget for the 2025 school year was about $16.2 billion, with nearly half already going to K-12 education.

"At the risk of stating the obvious: money is finite," the attorneys told the appellate judges. "The state cannot print more currency."

Schools say the problems are real

Attorneys representing school districts and education groups pushed back hard against the appeal. They told the Court of Appeals that the Legislature itself created the minimum adequacy standards through the School Facilities Board after a 1994 Arizona Supreme Court ruling voided the old finance system.

Their argument: lawmakers set the standards, then failed to fund them.

The lawyers pointed to specific examples from Judge Fox's ruling to show the human impact of underfunding:

• Elfrida Elementary School has roof leaks so severe that students stop classwork to place trash cans under dripping water.
• Classrooms in Chino Valley reach temperatures into the 90s because the district waited more than a decade for an HVAC replacement.
• Other schools face excessive carbon dioxide buildup, mold, and inadequate air conditioning.

"Children get one shot at elementary school," the schools' attorneys wrote. "A child in Chino Valley who spent her education in 90-degree classrooms while the district waited more than a decade for an HVAC replacement does not benefit from a remedy that may arrive after she is done with school."

They also rejected the lawmakers' claim that students are still meeting academic standards despite the funding gaps.

"These are Arizona children, not widgets," the attorneys wrote.

What happens next

The Arizona Court of Appeals has not yet set a hearing date on the appeal. If the appellate court grants a delay, it would give legislative leaders more time to argue that Judge Fox's order should be voided entirely.

If the court denies the delay, the early November deadline stands. Lawmakers and Governor Katie Hobbs would need to present a constitutionally acceptable funding plan or risk a statewide freeze on school money.

The case affects every public school district in Arizona, including the Phoenix Union High School District and Phoenix Elementary School District, which serve hundreds of thousands of students in the state's largest city.