PHOENIX — Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne says his department has “an overwhelming problem” trying to process reimbursements for the universal private school voucher program.
RELATED: Arizona Education Department explains what's changed following fraud investigation into ESA program
During an October meeting with education leaders, Horne said there are simply not enough workers to keep up with demand. Parents on ESA chatrooms have complained about waiting months to get expenses reimbursed. The wait times put lower-income families in a bind because they don’t have the financial means to go long stretches without getting reimbursed.
An unintended consequence of the backlog is cases of alleged fraud. Horne said his office attempted to streamline reimbursements earlier this year by allowing automatic reimbursements for purchases $75 and less. Administrators discovered seven account holders who bought about $13,000 worth of Amazon gift cards.
The accounts of those ESA parents were frozen and they will have to pay back the state or be referred to law enforcement, a spokesperson said.
"This is crazy. This office doesn't have a way to keep up with fraud that is likely a lot worse than we realize," Randy Parraz, who leads a movement to roll back the voucher program, said.
Horne said he will ask the state legislature to approve more funding for ESA administrators in January, and he blamed legislators for furthering the problem by not communicating with his office.
“Last year the legislature, without consulting us, approved paying tuition through reimbursement where previously that was paid through ClassWallet,” Horne said. “This has significantly increased the workload and therefore the approval time.”
Republican leaders Warren Petersen and Ben Toma did not respond to questions regarding Horne’s comments.
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes ordered Horne’s staff to tighten up scrutiny of purchases and opened a formal investigation of the ESA program. Horne says his office is complying with the order but is appealing it in court.
Mayes said her office has no intention of slowing down operations.
“Our priority is simply to ensure that the law is followed and that public monies are not misspent or spent without legal authorization,” said Richie Taylor, spokesperson for Mayes.
On Thursday Mayes sent Horne’s office a letter to clarify what the law actually requires.
“This letter provides several examples to guide the Department,” Taylor said. “It is important for the Department to provide clear, accurate information so that the law is followed, and parents are not burdened with unnecessary requirements.”
One public school activist said the department’s staff shortage is an example of Horne’s lack of planning. Randy Parraz points out Horne participated in a taxpayer-funded advertising campaign to encourage parents who are not satisfied with their public school to leave the public school system and sign up for ESAs.
“This is a superintendent of public instruction, not religious or private instruction, who went out there and used taxpayer dollars to attract more people on these vouchers,” Parraz said. “And now he’s complaining they don’t have the resources, they’re being inundated. It’s a self-created problem.”
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