Court will decide whether PED’s remedial plan meets Martinez‑Yazzie orders after plaintiffs press for clearer timelines and benchmarks

The First Judicial District Court has received plaintiffs’ filings and plaintiffs’ reply and will next evaluate whether the Public Education Department’s (PED) remedial action plan satisfies constitutional requirements set out in the Martinez‑Yazzie consolidated education sufficiency ruling.

"The matter is now fully briefed with the court," Jessica Hathaway told the committee as she summarized filings that followed PED’s October and November submissions. Plaintiffs filed separate complaints in February alleging the plan remains "not a true remedial plan," citing a lack of measurable goals, timelines, enforceable benchmarks, clear baselines, implementation steps, identified responsible parties and a funding strategy.

PED officials told legislators the department developed its plan through extensive stakeholder engagement, including more than 1,000 participants at 12 regional community meetings and more than 1,200 online survey responses, and that it submitted a draft in October 2025 and a final plan in November 2025. The department argued in court filings that some objections reflect formatting or style disputes and urged that the appropriate judicial remedy would be targeted edits rather…