The school board voted to keep these rates (the board president is the pastors wife and 4 of the 5 members attend the church) AND THEN  THEY DOUBLED PROPERTY TAXES while telling people they had looked at every other option to get money BUT NONE EXISTED.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Canon Elementary School District, a small rural district in Yavapai County, presents a governance environment in which public authority, fiscal decision‑making, and resource allocation have become structurally entangled with a single private religious organization. Documents, budgets, and board records from 2024–2026 show that four of the district’s five governing board members attend the same church, and the board president is married to the church’s pastor. During this period, the district repeatedly made decisions that financially benefited that church while simultaneously raising taxes on residents and reducing services for students.

This alignment is further entrenched by an unusual leadership arrangement: while multiple board seats are opening up, the board president has been appointed to a two‑year term, insulating the presidency from the normal annual reorganization process. This extended term ensures continuity of control for the church‑aligned majority, even as the board’s composition changes. In a district already lacking external oversight, this consolidation of authority significantly reduces the community’s ability to influence governance through elections.

The district’s fiscal narrative—centered on claims of declining revenue and limited options—does not withstand scrutiny. Although total revenues decreased between FY 2025 and FY 2026 due to a drop in enrollment, per‑pupil funding actually increased, rising to approximately $21,928 per student, far above the state average. Canon also received a $540,000 Small School Adjustment, substantial federal funding, and carried forward significant unspent balances, including $80,000 in Classroom Site Funds and $25,000 in capital funds. Despite this, the district enacted a 49 percent increase in its primary tax rate, raising it from 3.3196 to 4.9501.

At the same time, the board majority—socially and spiritually aligned with the church renting district facilities—voted to preserve a $5‑per‑day rental agreement for that church, rejecting multiple motions to adopt Auditor General‑aligned fee schedules. The board president, whose spouse leads the church, made the motion to keep the rate unchanged. The district later accepted a retroactive “donation boost” from the church but did not correct the underlying contract or address the revenue suppression that contributed to the district’s fiscal posture.

While protecting this below‑market arrangement, the district failed to deliver core educational services. Canon operated only one functional bus despite budgeting $184,270 for transportation in FY 2026, leaving families in an isolated community with no practical access to alternative schools. Students received no art, no music, no electives, no enrichment, and only token athletics funding, even though the district employed 26 staff members for 100 students, including 11 teachers, 4 aides, 9 classified staff, and 2 administrators.

The cumulative evidence demonstrates that Canon’s challenges are not the result of insufficient funding, but of governance decisions shaped by conflicts of interest, majority bloc alignment, and the influence of a private religious organization over public resources. In a town with no municipal government, no local press, and no independent oversight, these decisions have left residents with higher taxes, students with fewer opportunities, and the district with a governance structure that fails to meet its statutory and ethical obligations.

This report documents the fiscal, legal, and governance failures that have allowed a public school district to become functionally captured by a private entity and outlines the consequences for the community it is obligated to serve.

SCHOOL BOARD APPROVES RATE FOR CHURCH