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REFERENCE TITLE: schools; counselors on campus; appropriation |
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State of Arizona Senate Fifty-fourth Legislature First Regular Session 2019
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SB 1325 |
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Introduced by Senators Mendez: Dalessandro, Gonzales, Navarrete, Otondo, Peshlakai, Quezada; Representative Salman
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AN ACT
Amending Title 15, chapter 2, article 2, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 15-249.14; appropriating monies; relating to the department of education.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Title 15, chapter 2, article 2, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 15-249.14, to read:
15-249.14. Counselors on campus program; program proposals; distribution of monies; annual report; exemption; program termination
A. The counselors on campus program is established in the department of education to support the cost of placing counselors and social workers on school campuses. A school district, a public school or a charter school may submit a program proposal on or before April 15 of the current fiscal year to the department to apply to participate in the program as provided in this section for up to the next five fiscal years. The program proposal shall contain both:
1. Information on the school's or school district's current counselor‑to‑student ratio.
2. A plan that describes how a counselor or social worker would serve the school's or school district's needs.
B. The department of education shall administer the counselors on campus program. The department shall assess the needs of each program proposal submitted pursuant to subsection A of this section and visit the applicable school sites to verify the information contained in the program proposals.
C. The department of education and the state board of education shall review program proposals submitted and shall select program participation school sites to receive funding pursuant to this section based on the school's or school district's counselor‑to‑student ratio and overall need for counselors or social workers. The department, subject to review and approval by the state board, shall distribute monies to school districts and schools that comply with program requirements if the department and state board have approved the school district's or school's program proposal. The department and state board shall review and approve renewal applications for up to an additional three fiscal years from participating school districts and schools.
D. On or before November 1, the department of education shall submit an annual report to the governor, the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives that evaluates the effectiveness of the counselors on campus program and that includes survey results from program participants. The department shall provide a copy of this report to the secretary of state.
E. Monies distributed to a school district or school pursuant to this section shall be used to hire either a counselor or social worker.
F. Any appropriations made to the department of education for the purposes of this section are exempt from the provisions of section 35-190 relating to the lapsing of appropriations. All monies that are not used during the fiscal year for which the monies were appropriated revert to the department for distribution in the following fiscal year.
G. The program established by this section ends on July 1, 2029 pursuant to section 41‑3102.
Sec. 2. Appropriation; department of education; counselors and social workers
The sum of $5,500,000 is appropriated from the state general fund in fiscal year 2019-2020 to the department of education to allow school districts, public schools and charter schools that participate in the counselors on campus program established by section 15‑249.14, Arizona Revised Statutes, as added by this act, to hire counselors and social workers.