Arizona AG Responds to Alleged $10.3M in Banned ESA Purchases

Records show thousands of parents used education voucher funds for banned items like condoms and wedding gifts.

Published on Feb. 27, 2026

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The Arizona Attorney General has responded to a 12News I-Team investigation that obtained records from the Arizona Department of Education revealing potentially $10.3 million in misspending of the state's $1 billion Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) voucher program. The records show close to 20% of ESA account holders, or 18,000 parents, used the funds for banned purchases like condoms, wedding gifts, and even paying themselves.

Why it matters

The ESA program was created to provide families with taxpayer-funded vouchers to use for private school tuition, homeschooling expenses, and other educational costs. The revelation of widespread misuse of these funds raises concerns about oversight and accountability within the program.

The details

According to the records obtained by 12News, nearly 84,000 banned purchases were made with ESA funds between December 2024 and October 2025, when the purchases were approved by the office of State Schools Superintendent Tom Horne. The Department of Education identified the flagged purchases through a random risk assessment and full account audit, finding banned items in about 20% of the 380,000 transactions sampled.

  • The records obtained by 12News cover the period from roughly December 2024 to October 2025.
  • The purchases were approved by the office of State Schools Superintendent Tom Horne during this time.

The players

Kris Mayes

The Arizona Attorney General who responded to the 12News I-Team investigation.

Tom Horne

The Arizona State Schools Superintendent whose office approved the purchases identified as banned.

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What they’re saying

“Taxpayer dollars meant for education spent on diamond rings and now condoms??”

— Kris Mayes, Arizona Attorney General (X)

“Most of it is just mistakes”

— Tom Horne, Arizona State Schools Superintendent (12News)

What’s next

The Arizona Attorney General's office has indicated it will be investigating the alleged misuse of ESA funds further.

The takeaway

This case highlights the need for stronger oversight and accountability measures within the ESA voucher program to ensure taxpayer dollars are being used for their intended educational purposes and not on prohibited personal expenses.