THE CENTER SQUARE: Report Highlights Long-Term Taxpayer Benefits from Arizona’s ESA Program

A new report from the Fiscal Research and Education Center is highlighting the long-term fiscal benefits of Arizona's Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program, countering critics who claim the program strains state resources. The study analyzed school choice programs across 25 states, focusing on the financial impact of Arizona's universal ESA, which was enacted in 2023. According to the report, Arizona’s ESA program not only supports school choice but also provides significant taxpayer savings over time. Madeline Armstrong of The Center Square writes:

This report includes a separate fiscal analysis of this program and estimates that the short-run net fiscal effects on state and local taxpayers combined were $37 million net costs in FY 2024... We estimate that over the long term Arizona’s ESA program will lead to annual net fiscal savings of $244 million. These results call into question claims that education choice is ‘blowing a hole’ in the state’s budget.

The report debunks the myth that school choice undermines public schools. In fact, it found that the cost per ESA student, $9,736, is only 66% of what it costs to educate a student in public schools. By empowering parents to choose what’s best for their children, the ESA program not only saves taxpayer dollars but also relieves the state of some of the costly requirements that come with traditional public education. Armstrong adds:

This amount represents 0.9% of all other state-funded public services... the Arizona Department of Education has calculated that about 47% of students in the ESA program were formerly enrolled in public schools... saving the state money.

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