State Superintendent Tom Horne announced the conviction of two individuals for fraud involving Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) funds. The State of Arizona Department of Education discovered the fraudulent activity in 2024 and referred it for prosecution.
Horne criticized state Attorney General Chris Mayes, who had accused him of allowing improper purchases with ESA funds. “In a recent television interview, state Attorney General Chris Mayes outrageously and mindlessly accused me of permitting improper purchases such as lingerie and diamonds,” Horne said. He emphasized that the accusation was false, noting that over $622,000 in improper purchases have been collected or referred for collection under the program.
The department employs risk-based auditing, a method used by many federal and state agencies, to handle reimbursements efficiently. According to Horne, this approach prevents delays that could burden parents waiting for reimbursements. The department has successfully appealed 16 cases involving unallowable expenses like dune buggies and golf simulators without support from the Attorney General’s office.
Horne highlighted staffing challenges within the department, stating that they have the same number of reviewers despite a tenfold increase in ESA participants. The 12 staff members manage to process 500 requests daily out of 1,000 received. A proposal to increase staffing was removed from the budget after Governor Katie Hobbs threatened a veto, which could have led to a government shutdown.
“I am committed to doing everything possible to protect taxpayer resources and root out fraud and abuse,” Horne concluded.
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