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Pima County Supervisors vote to continue funding early education through library taxes
by Hannah Cree | AZPM News, August 19, 2025
The Pima County Board of Supervisors passed a new policy to fund the county’s early education program after it lost significant financial support from other local governments.
District 5 Supervisor Andrés Cano introduced the new policy that will fund the Pima Early Education Program Scholarships, known as PEEPs, entirely through the library tax district and attract outside investment.
PEEPs provides low-income families in Pima County with financial assistance to pay for preschool. Just under 2,000 children were in the program last year.
Cano acknowledged that the library system is “hurting,” but said it was possible to continue funding several planned library renovation projects as well as continue providing subsidized preschool.
“This isn't about choosing between libraries and preschool. Both are pillars of learning. Both deserve our investment,” Cano said.
The necessity to secure other funding sources comes after the City of Tucson more than halved its contribution to the PEEPs program from $750,000 to just $320,000 earlier this year due to budget constraints. The city will stop funding it entirely after this year, according to an Aug. 15 county memo.
That funding reduction would have meant 48 children would not be able to receive scholarships for preschool. It costs the county $12,600 per child.
The policy passed 4-1 by the Board on Tuesday includes a one-time allocation of $600,000 in excess funds from the library tax district to make up for the City of Tucson’s cuts, and continue preschool access for the upcoming school year.
Starting next summer, the library tax will need to go up by about two cents a year for three years to continue funding the county’s library expenses, plus the PEEPs program, and maintain an adequate amount of cash reserves, County Administrator Jan Lesher wrote in the Aug. 18 memo.
Supervisor Steve Christy, the only Republican on the board, was the opposing vote. He said the county lacks adequate metrics showing early childhood education is making a difference in preparing students for kindergarten.
Board Chair Rex Scott said the county receives feedback on kindergarten readiness directly from districts, and that investment in early education improves the area’s economic value.
“We're able to say to any business that wants to locate or expand in Pima County that we have a thriving pre-K to higher ed community. And the one area where the county can really have an impact is in preschool,” he said.
As local governments continue to face revenue shortfalls from Arizona’s flat tax combined with federal funding cuts, PEEPs program leaders are also seeking private and business funding for early childhood education.
The new county policy establishes the PEEPS Workforce and Business Leadership Council that hopes to partner with businesses and economic groups, and will focus on teacher training and credentialing, hiring and retention incentives, and identifying gaps in childcare access near major job centers, according to Cano’s Aug. 12 memo.
According to a July 8 memo, county officials are also developing a sliding scale payment system for PEEPs that would enable more families to receive some degree of financial support from the program.
Photo: Pima County Supervisors Matt Heinz, Jennifer Allen, and Rex Scott pose with new Supervisor Andrés Cano [second from left] after he was sworn in for the District 5 seat on Tuesday, April 15, 2025.