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The Arizona Supreme Court has upheld the Constitutional right of Arizonans to vote this November on Proposition 204 - Quality Education and Jobs.
The Quality Education and Jobs initiative will renew the one-cent sales tax when it expires in 2013 to provide dedicated permanent revenue for education that the Legislature cannot cut. Prop. 204 will support education across the spectrum: K-12, charter schools, vocational education, community colleges, universities and GED programs.
The justices rejected arguments by anti-education legislators, lobbyists and Secretary of State Ken Bennett.
The campaign legal team successfully argued that Bennett's arbitrary decision to reject the campaign's petitions on a hyper-technicality was unconstitutional.
On July 18, Maricopa County Judge Robert Oberbillig agreed and ordered Bennett to place the measure on the ballot after a brief 25-minute hearing. Bennett was urged by special interests to appeal that decision to the Arizona Supreme Court, which he did. Anti-education legislators and lobbying groups filed "Friend of the Court" briefs urging the court to throw Prop. 204 off the ballot.
While the legal case was pending, the petition validation process continued and is almost complete. Reports from Arizona counties show that Prop. 204 has more than enough valid signatures to qualify for the ballot.
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