Arkansas legislators just backed another $70 million in reserve funds for the state's Educational Freedom Account program, pushing total school choice funding toward $380 million this year—as roughly 50,000 students vote with their feet and leave government schools.

The government monopoly on education is cracking, and the establishment is scrambling to hold the line. In Arkansas, parents are demanding freedom and getting it. In California, the teachers union is suing to keep its grip on billions in guaranteed funding. Follow the money: one state empowers families, the other protects the administrative state.

The Arkansas Legislative Council's Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review Subcommittee advanced the $70 million reserve request Tuesday in a voice vote with no audible dissent, according to Arkansas Online. If the full Legislative Council approves the request Friday, total state funding for the program will hit $379.4 million for the 2026-27 school year—combining $309.4 million in general revenue with the $70 million reserve.

This is the second year the Educational Freedom Account program—informally called vouchers—is open to every K-12 student in the state. The Education Department expects about 50,000 students to participate this year, up from roughly 44,100 last year. Each account costs the state $7,346 per student, up from $6,994 the prior year. Families receive slightly less than that, with the difference going to ClassWallet, the vendor that runs the program's online platform.

"I think [the endorsement] continues to show that this Legislature supports the direction that the state's going on allowing parents to choose the best education options for their students," Senate President Pro Tempore Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs, said after the subcommittee meeting.

State spending on the program has skyrocketed since it went universal. School choice proponents say the rapid increase proves enormous demand. Skeptics say the costs will keep ballooning. Rep. Joy Springer, D-Little Rock, said after Tuesday's meeting that the Education Department should provide more information on whether the state's investment is actually benefiting students.

Meanwhile, the teachers union machine is fighting a rear-guard action in California. The California Teachers Association is suing Gov. Gavin Newsom's administration for withholding at least $3.9 billion in education funds guaranteed under Proposition 98, a 1988 ballot measure that amended the state constitution to set a minimum annual education funding floor, the New York Post reported. Revised state budgets deferred Prop. 98 payments for both the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years. The state Department of Finance calls the deferrals necessary due to "persistent uncertainty in revenue projections."

"These are public school educators who have devoted their entire career to educating California students, and their future is in jeopardy with threats to withhold vital funds from our local school districts," CTA president David Goldberg said in a statement on the deferral.

The irony: districts are hemorrhaging students. Los Angeles Unified voted this year to cut jobs amid budget shortfalls. San Juan Unified could lose $3.7 million from enrollment drops. The union is suing to lock in funding for a system families are already abandoning.

Newsom's administration has blamed President Trump for revenue uncertainty, with Finance Department spokesperson H.D. Palmer citing "federal policies" that have made "economic projections substantially more complex."

The contrast couldn't be sharper. Arkansas puts money in parents' hands. California's union fights to keep it locked in a failing system. The question isn't whether education costs money—it's who decides how it gets spent.