Investing in Arizona’s Future: What the FY2026 State Budget Means for Education
Education Forward Arizona’s mission is to advocate for and act on education improvements that advance the quality of life for all Arizonans. A thriving education ecosystem is a cornerstone of a successful state economy, healthy communities and an individual’s ability to support themselves and their families. In line with Education Forward Arizona’s advocacy priorities, let’s look at the Arizona budget for FY2026.
Below we highlight benefits for education, reflect on what more can be done to support all students in Arizona, and focus on how this budget does (and does not) drive Arizona’s efforts to reach the bi-partisan Achieve60AZ goal, ensuring 60% of Arizonans hold a post-secondary degree or credential by 2030. This bipartisan budget falls short of fully funding students at all levels of P-20 education, but several positive education outcomes were realized because of well-documented collaborative efforts between Gov. Hobbs and legislative leaders. Those include:
Early Childhood Education – Setting a Strong Foundation:
- $45M allocation of funding to lessen the DES waitlist for families looking to get their youngest learners into quality childcare. First Things First research shows that from the ages of 0-5 the brain develops up to 90%. Having a safe, healthy environment for children allows them to be kindergarten ready and helps families to remain in the workforce, contributing to the economy.
- $3M of funding for after school and summer care to help parents and guardians ensure students are in a safe, academically rich environment when school is not in session.
K12 Education – Investing in Our Pipeline:
- Aggregate Expenditure Waiver (AEL) for FY26 and FY27 passed for K12 public schools. This allows K12 schools to fully use their allocated budget and plan with certainty for the entire school year for the next two years. While a permanent solution needs to be found, this helps schools focus on student learning and achievement instead of worrying about whether they can spend their entire budget.
- $3.4M of funding for the Ninth Grade On-Track Program. This initiative helps to ensure ninth graders are on-track to complete high school in four years by providing intervention and collaboration for those who are falling behind. Successfully completing high school is the first step towards postsecondary success.
- $37M of funding for free and reduced-price lunch (FRPL) weight students, to support those with low-income backgrounds. This group of students benefit from additional interventions to be academically successful. This is the third year of funding of this type and students across the state are receiving services to help them on the path to graduation.
Postsecondary Education – Where Arizona Has Everything to Gain:
- $9M of new investment in the Arizona Teachers Academy. This valuable program helps support students on the path to becoming teachers in Arizona, filling an essential workforce need to find high quality teachers for all Arizona students (Arizona still has a significant teacher shortage). When combined with the existing $15M already in the program, this will help many more Arizona students become educators.
- $1.5M of funding for dual enrollment students in high school. Research from Helios Education Foundation has shown that students who participate in dual enrollment are twice as likely to attend and complete college as those who did not participate in the program. This is a step in the right direction, and we are grateful to Gov. Hobbs for ensuring a base investment in dual enrollment remained in this budget. We will continue to advocate for a substantial commitment to this impactful program in the FY2027 budget.
- $34M of new investment in the Arizona College Promise Program. This combined with the established annual funding of $20M ($54M total) will allow more students from low-income families to access public universities in Arizona. When students earn a bachelor’s degree from one of the universities in Arizona their earning potential triples compared to those with a high school diploma.
- $3M of new investment for the Arizona Community College Promise Program. This is the first time money has been allocated to support community college students. This will help many individuals access education and training programs that allow them to land high-skill, in-demand, high-wage jobs in their communities.
- $9M of funding for adult education and workforce development programs that help adult learners to upskill and reskill and compete for the growing High Wage, High Skill & High Demand (H3) occupations available in their communities.
Education Forward Arizona has been an outspoken and persistent advocate for over a decade for both the Arizona College Promise Program and the Community College Promise Program. We are thrilled to see these growing investments in the budget.
The largest barrier to postsecondary education and training for students is cost and this vital investment will help alleviate that financial burden.
While many of the allocations towards education in this year’s budget are one-time funding items, the expected impact of these programs should encourage elected officials to renew and enhance funding for these vital opportunities. Arizona has faced significant challenges in funding education for decades. Those challenges have been exacerbated by suppressed state revenues arising from years of policy decisions that have stunted potential revenue growth.
The perpetually tight revenue picture that affected this budget is not a result of a struggling economy, but rather a product of choices made over the last decade or longer. Education Forward Arizona chooses to continue to focus on students, leveraging our programs, our voice, and our platforms to advocate for investments necessary to support Arizona’s students and break the cycle that continually keeps our state stuck at the bottom of too many education rankings lists.
Collectively, we must remember that opportunities for young people and all of Arizona’s learners depend on education. It is clear that our state’s economic future depends on strengthening the pipeline of homegrown talent – as measured by the Arizona Education Progress Meter and ultimately tested by whether we can hit the Achieve60AZ goal.
Should we reach that goal, Arizona has Everything to Gain. The often referred to Billions to Gain report leaves no doubt that investing in education and training beyond high school and increasing attainment in Arizona catalyzes a highly skilled 21st Century workforce, unlocks billions of dollars in revenue, and could help resolve many of our current budget issues!