Maricopa County Judge Finds Voter-Approved Prop 208 Unconstitutional

A Maricopa County Superior Court Judge has struck down voter-approved Proposition 208, which would have raised taxes for education on the most wealthy Arizona taxpayers. The tax amounted to a three-and-a-half percent surcharge on single taxpayers making $250-thousand a year, $500-thousand for couples. Governor Doug Ducey was among Republicans hailing the ruling as a victory. Senate Democrat Rebecca Rios disagrees saying, “this is a big loser for Arizona voters that the majority voted to increase funding.” She adds, “the money would have gone to public education and this is a big loser for our K-12 public education system.” Rios can’t say if the ruling will be appealed, but Prop 208 has already made it up once to the Arizona Supreme Court last year. They also found it unconstitutional. It went back to the lower court to determine if Constitutional spending limits for education were violated. Judge John Hannah determined it did. Prop 208 passed in 2020 by 113-thousand votes, 52-percent to 48-percent.