Proposition 320: Direct Instructional Spending by Larger School Districts
Statewide — all of Arizona
General election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026
- Referred to the ballot by the Arizona Legislature as Senate Concurrent Resolution 1032 (2026), which passed the Senate 16-12 on March 23, 2026 and the House 31-22 on June 13, 2026, per Arizona Legislature floor-vote records.[3]
- Per Ballotpedia, the Yes campaign was organized by the Pay Teachers First PAC.[4]
The question on the ballot
PROPOSITION 320. REFERRED TO THE PEOPLE BY THE LEGISLATURE RELATING TO SCHOOL DISTRICT BUDGETS. OFFICIAL TITLE: AMENDING TITLE 15, CHAPTER 9, ARTICLE 1, ARIZONA REVISED STATUTES BY ADDING SECTION 15-917. DESCRIPTIVE TITLE: REQUIRES CERTAIN SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO SPEND AT LEAST SIXTY PERCENT OF THEIR OPERATIONAL SPENDING ON DIRECT INSTRUCTIONAL EXPENSES AS DEFINED BY THE AUDITOR GENERAL; REDUCES CERTAIN STATE FUNDING FOR NON-COMPLIANT DISTRICTS.[2]
Requires each school district with at least 7,500 students, or operating a school in a county of at least 500,000 people, to spend at least 60 percent of operational spending on direct instructional expenses, with the Auditor General defining both terms. Beginning in fiscal year 2027-28, a district below 60 percent must raise its share by at least one-half of one percent per year until compliant. The Department of Education would reduce a noncompliant district's Classroom Site Fund allocation by 25 percent for each year of noncompliance, up to 100 percent after four or more years, unless a waiver is granted; withheld money goes to compliant districts the next year.[1][2]
A YES vote means
A "yes" vote shall have the effect of: (1) requiring school districts with 7,500 or more students in any county or that operate in a county with 500,000 or more people to spend at least 60% of their operational spending on direct instructional expenses; (2) requiring the state Auditor General to define "operational spending" and "direct instructional expenses"; (3) requiring non-compliant school districts to gradually adjust their spending each year until they are in compliance; and (4) requiring the state Department of Education to reduce funding from the state Classroom Site Fund by 25% each year for non-compliant districts, subject to limited waivers that the state Superintendent of Public Instruction may authorize.
A NO vote means
A "no" vote shall have the effect of maintaining the current laws governing school district budgets.
The law today
Per the Arizona Senate fact sheet and House summary: the Classroom Site Fund (CSF) is funded from the Permanent State School Fund and an additional 0.6 percent sales and excise tax for education, and school districts and charter schools spend it on class size reduction, teacher compensation, assessment intervention, teacher development and liability insurance, dropout prevention and student support services (A.R.S. 15-977). The Auditor General annually reports each district's instructional spending as a share of operational spending; the FY 2025 statewide instructional share was 52.1 percent.[5][6]
Official fiscal estimate
Arizona Senate fact sheet: "There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation." The Legislative Council analysis and publicity pamphlet give no fiscal estimate.[5]
Arguments made for
- The Goldwater Institute (Victor Riches, President and CEO): "This measure would reverse these trends by requiring schools to put teachers and students first when making budgeting decisions."[2]
- Arizona Women of Action (Kimberly Miller, President): "Arizona Women of Action supports this positive reform requiring large school districts to direct at least 60% of operational spending to direct classroom instruction."[2]
Arguments made against
- League of Women Voters of Arizona (Pinny Sheoran, Board Officer): "The measure also leaves key definitions to be determined later by the Auditor General, creating uncertainty regarding what expenses qualify as direct instruction and how compliance will be measured."[2]
- Education Forward Arizona (Rich Nickel, President and CEO): "Prop 320 does not provide new resources to classrooms, the ability to raise teacher pay, improve literacy, or help more students graduate prepared for college and career training."[2]
On record in support
Research notes & limits
Slate: the Secretary of State's official 2026 General Election Publicity Pamphlet (hosted by the Citizens Clean Elections Commission; azsos.gov itself returned a bot-protection block and was not bypassed) lists exactly eight statewide measures: Propositions 141, 142, 144, 316, 317, 318, 319 and 320. Ballot question, 'yes'/'no' text: copied from the pamphlet's 'Ballot Format' page for this proposition. Arguments: excerpts of arguments published in that pamphlet, attributed to the signer and sponsoring organization it prints; the pamphlet prints many arguments per side (it reproduces spelling and punctuation as submitted), so these are a selection of 2 for and 2 against, not the full set. Legislative vote counts are from the Arizona Legislature's floor-action records. The pamphlet contains no fiscal estimate for this measure. Required vote: a majority of those voting. Items attributed to Ballotpedia (court ruling or campaign details) were not independently confirmed from the underlying primary source. Enrichment: no committee fundraising totals were found. The pamphlet's 'for' argument calls the measure the 'Prioritize Teacher Pay Act'; the earlier Ballotpedia-based reference to a 'Pay Teachers First PAC' was not confirmed from a primary source.
Sources · 6
Researched 2026-10-19. Green citations are official government records.
- 1.Analysis by Legislative Council, Proposition 320 · Arizona Legislative Council · 2026 Official record
- 2.Arizona 2026 General Election Publicity Pamphlet (November 3, 2026) · Arizona Secretary of State (Citizens Clean Elections Commission hosting) · 2026 Official record
- 3.Arizona Legislature floor-action and vote record · Arizona Legislature · 2026 Official record
- 4.Arizona Proposition 320 (2026) · Ballotpedia · 2026-10-16 Reference
- 5.Senate Fact Sheet for S.C.R. 1032 (as passed by Committee of the Whole) · Arizona Legislature · 2026-10-19 Official record
- 6.House Bill Summary, SCR1032 (transmitted to Secretary of State) · Arizona Legislature · 2026-10-19 Official record