Reps. Ann Kirkpatrick and Raul Grijalva have called on Governor Doug Ducey to immediately reverse his plans to withhold American Rescue Plan funding from health-focused Arizona schools. On Tuesday Gov. Ducey created a $163 million school grant program using federal virus relief funds he controls, but schools that have mask mandates or have to close because of COVID-19 outbreaks won’t be eligible for the additional $1,800 per student, the Associated Press reported.
At least six school districts in Arizona have implemented mask mandates. According to Ducey’s office, those districts have 10 days to rescind the mandates or they will lose out on federal funding.
Rep. Kirkpatrick wrote, “As Arizona’s only Congressional Representative on the Appropriations Committee, I worked tirelessly to ensure that our state, and your office, received significant federal funding for urgent relief. I worked with my colleagues to ensure every Arizona school would receive the federal support they need to get through the pandemic. This effort was successful, to the great relief of parents and educators in my district and around the state. Now, you have placed these educators in an impossible position – protect their lives and health and those of their students, or risk losing the funding Congress intended them to receive. I am, frankly, not surprised by your disgraceful decision to again undercut our schools, and completely disregard and politicize the advice from our medical professionals, but nonetheless urge you to reconsider.”
Raul Grijalva also responded to Ducey’s plan, saying in a press release, “Governor Ducey has wasted no time in doubling down on his anti-public schools, anti-mask and anti-vaccine agenda. This latest undertaking of forcing public schools to choose between critical federal relief funds or the health and safety of its students, families, and faculty is simply cruel.”
Grijalva also sent a letter to Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona. On Twitter, he wrote, “Today I sent a letter to @SecCardona to inquire over the legality of Governor Ducey’s proposal that will disproportionately deny aid to schools that are taking appropriate mitigation actions to protect their students.”
The U.S. Treasury released a statement that Ducey’s plan is a misuse of federal funding.
“No state should use federal funds to prevent or discourage schools from using evidence-based approaches to stopped the spread of Covid-19,” a Treasury spokesperson said. “Treasury is monitoring all proposed expenditures and expects any state or local government that uses State and Local funds in violation of the eligible uses to repay the misused funds to the federal government.”
“Now, the Treasury Department has made it crystal clear that the Governor’s plans are a violation of the law – Arizona needs these federal dollars and Gov. Ducey is compromising that. It is abhorrent, disgusting, and puts our children at risk,” said Rep. Kirkpatrick. “Governor Ducey, you have the power to reverse this politically motivated decision – use it.”
