Goddard Statement on Charter School Student Residency

(Phoenix, Ariz. – May 21, 2009) Attorney General Terry Goddard today issued the following statement regarding charter school student residency: 

“The State of Arizona is struggling to make ends meet, and no area is feeling the squeeze more than our schools. Providing Arizona students with a quality education must be lawmakers’ top priority as the state weathers this economic crisis. Arizona tax dollars should not be used to educate residents of other states, whether that state is California, Utah or Sonora. Funding the schooling of those who do not live in Arizona is a wasteful expenditure that draws money away from critical investment in Arizona students.” 

“I join Superintendent Horne in calling upon lawmakers and the Governor to apply the same student residency requirement to all publicly funded schools in Arizona by closing the loophole that exempts charter schools from A.R.S. §15-823.”