Proposed Arizona amendment targets education union funding

HR 2040 aims to restrict education labor organizations, like the Arizona Education Association, by banning tax dollars from being used for union activities.

If passed, it would prohibit Arizona public school districts from deducting payments from employee paychecks for labor organization membership dues; providing access to the school's communication systems to distribute labor organization materials; distributing communications on behalf of a labor organization if it consumes public resources; and using public resources and money to perform labor organization activities during working hours.

It would also supersede existing contracts and agreements between unions and school districts.

"The school districts didn't ask for this. The superintendents, the school board members, educators, none of those asked for this," said Arizona Education Association President Marisol Garcia.

One of Garcia's worries is that the proposed legislation would nullify contracts and agreements with school districts.

"We don't have tenure in Arizona, so we get new contracts every year," Garcia said. "This would disrupt any contract negotiations that have happened in the past, whether that's recess schedules, holidays. Anything at all that we've negotiated would be null."

She also said union members would now have to go out of their way to pay union dues rather than having the optional ease of paying through paycheck deductions.

"When you sign your contract, you're asked to sign up for health care, disability (and) your retirement, and you can ask them to take it out of your paycheck prior to you getting paid," Garcia said. "And so, what this bill would say is you can keep doing all those, you just can no longer have your union dues taken out of your payroll."

Arizona school union dues fund collective bargaining, legal representation, legislative lobbying and operational expenses.

Rep. Justin Olson, the resolution sponsor, said it is intended to prevent public funds from supporting private organizations.

"From my perspective, it's an appropriate policy to put in place so that our public resources are not being used to subsidize a private organization," Olson said.

Garcia, however, said the proposal is a retaliatory effort against the union's fight for stronger restrictions for Empowerment Scholarship Account vouchers, which allow parents to use a portion of their child’s public education funding for private school tuition, homeschooling or specialized therapies.

"They're very angry about the fact that they have been unable to stop the waste, fraud and abuse that is happening in the vouchers ESA program," Garcia said.

In a report released earlier this month, the auditor general found several deficiencies with voucher program oversight from the Department of Education. It found that an automatic approval system of items under $2,000 allowed reimbursements for things like amusement park and airline tickets, hotel stays and meals.

The Arizona Education Association co-founded the Protect Education Act, a 2026 ballot initiative designed to rein in the voucher system, in March alongside Save Our Schools Arizona.

The initiative is pushing for critical accountability and transparency reforms to curb ballooning costs on state taxpayers. It would require a $150,000 income cap for eligible households, mandatory reporting of funds for private schools receiving public voucher money and that unspent ESA funds be redirected back to public schools. 

To qualify for the November 2026 ballot, campaign organizers must submit approximately 255,949 valid signatures by July 2.

HCR 2040, however, must pass through both state congressional chambers to end up on the November ballot. It has passed through the House and is awaiting final action from Senate leadership.