When the governor, the attorney general, Save Our Schools or anyone else attack ESAs, the media come to me for a response and counterattack. I am the only statewide official who actively advocates for the value of ESAs and explains the reasons.

As a policy matter, I do not believe that parents should have to tie supplementary materials to curriculum, and it was my department that drafted the handbook adopted by the state board that did not do so.

In addition, I want to make the point that I do not hesitate to take on the attorney general when I have reasonable assurance of succeeding in the long run. I took her on over such issues as keeping boys out of girls’ sports and making sure that Spanish-speaking students are taught English. I believe I have taken on an attorney general more than any Superintendent in history.

When I received the attorney general’s message, I sent it to the most knowledgeable people in my department. I asked them to look at it, not as an advocate, because we all disagree with the Attorney General, but in a neutral way, as though they were judges to determine if they could give me a reasonable assurance of success. They analyzed the statutes on which the attorney general relied, and indicated to me that as a neutral judge, they would rule against me if I made a fight out of it and refused to comply. Getting into a fight and losing, would be much more damaging.

At the same time, I’ve had conversations with the Goldwater Institute about their suing the attorney general about this. I told him I would support them and be a witness for them if they chose to do that. A court decision, which I am appealing, held that the Department of Education does not have standing to file lawsuits itself.

In addition, I had initially indicated I would ask the state board to revise the handbook in accordance with the attorney general’s interpretation. After talking with the Goldwater Institute, I sent the attorney general an email stating that I was reconsidering, and if the Attorney General wanted a change in the handbook, the Attorney General could ask the state board. I would not do so.

In the meantime, I believe the best way to fight government overreach is to make the task as reasonable as possible. There are curriculum experts, who could make this complicated. I chose not to do so. I have sent out an example which indicates that all that is needed is to identify what part of the curriculum, the supplementary Materials are needed for it. If the curriculum does not have an appropriate spot for that, all that is required is to supplement the curriculum to which to tie the supplementary materials.