Local & State
Arizona audit reignites fight over paid parent caregiver program
PN Team • 2 months ago
A new state audit has intensified debate over Arizona's Parents as Paid Caregivers program, which pays parents to care for children with severe disabilities. Auditors found the state could have saved up to half a billion dollars in fiscal year 2026 had officials fully implemented cost-control measures required under a 2025 law, including a new assessment tool that Gov. Katie Hobbs suspended amid threatened litigation from advocacy groups.
The program's costs have surged as it expanded from covering adult children to minors during the pandemic; related attendant-care spending rose from $77 million in 2019 to nearly $615 million in 2025, with the parent caregiver program driving much of the increase. About 8,800 children now receive parent-provided care, up from roughly 3,469 in 2023.
Republican lawmakers, including Rep. David Livingston and Senate Majority Leader John Kavanagh, call the program "out-of-control" and want deeper cuts, while Hobbs' office and disability advocates warn that reducing hours could force children into costlier institutional or foster care. A legislative hearing is expected early next year.
Sources:
Sentiment
- Katie Hobbs Hobbs is portrayed as having suspended a cost-control assessment tool amid litigation threats, contributing to the audit's criticism of mismanagement.
- Arizona Arizona is the subject of a state audit revealing budget overruns, a factual but mildly negative context.
- Republican Party (United States) Republican lawmakers are shown critiquing the program, a neutral-to-mildly critical political stance rather than reputational harm to the party itself.