HB2422 - 561R

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Title 15, chapter 13, article 2, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 15-1650.07, to read:

START_STATUTE15-1650.07. Arizona criminal justice academy; tuition and fees scholarships; fund; reporting requirements; definitions

A. Eligible postsecondary institutions shall implement an Arizona criminal justice academy to incentivize students to enter the criminal justice profession and to commit to work in this state. The Arizona board of regents, in consultation with eligible postsecondary institutions, shall develop and implement centralized administrative processes for the academy, including:

1. A marketing and promotion plan to recruit students for the academy.

2. Data collection and reporting.

3. Tracking postgraduation service requirements.

4. Coordinating induction services.

5. Distributing monies in the Arizona criminal justice academy fund between eligible postsecondary institutions.

6. Collecting reimbursement from individuals who fail to meet service obligations.

B. The Arizona criminal justice academy may include new or existing criminal justice programs that use proven, research-based models of best practices already being implemented. Each eligible postsecondary institution may develop a portfolio of criminal justice programs to offer as part of the academy. Each eligible postsecondary institution that admits students to the Arizona criminal justice academy may give priority to senior and junior students but may not exclude sophomore and freshman students.

C. Each eligible postsecondary institution shall develop formalized partnerships with criminal justice agencies in this state to build commitments for employment on a student's completion of the Arizona criminal justice academy. The targeted deployment of criminal justice professionals who have completed the academy shall be based on the needs of each criminal justice agency and the community that is being served as well as the individual skills of each criminal justice professional.

D. Each eligible postsecondary institution shall provide to each student who is enrolled in the Arizona criminal justice academy an annual scholarship up to the actual cost of tuition and fees for a maximum of two academic years or four semesters for graduate university students, up to the actual cost of tuition and fees for a maximum of four academic years or eight semesters for undergraduate university students and up to the actual cost of tuition and fees for a maximum of two academic years or four semesters for community college students for tuition and fees associated with the student's program of study, after all other financial gifts, aid or grants received by that student. Scholarships under this subsection are subject to all of the following:

1. If the student does not successfully complete the academic year in good academic standing, the student shall reimburse the Arizona board of regents for the total amount of the scholarship for tuition and fees the student received for that year.

2. For each academic year that the student successfully completes and for which the student receives a scholarship for all tuition and fees, the student must agree to work for one full year in a criminal justice profession in this state. For students who are working in a criminal justice profession and receiving the scholarship concurrently, the commitment period begins after graduation from the Arizona criminal justice academy.

3. If a student enrolls in a summer term, that term may not be included in the calculation of the student's postgraduation public service commitment.

4. If the scholarship does not cover remaining tuition and fee costs after other aid received, the eligible postsecondary institution may not charge students the remaining difference. If the scholarship amount exceeds tuition and fee costs at an eligible postsecondary institution, the eligible postsecondary institution may use the remaining amount to support Arizona criminal justice academy costs.

5. If the student does not fulfill the student's obligation to work in a criminal justice profession in this state, the student must reimburse the Arizona board of regents for the proportional amount of the scholarship for tuition and fees that the student received that corresponds to the number of years the student agreed to work in a criminal justice profession in this state but did not work in a criminal justice profession in this state.

6. If the student is physically or mentally unable to fulfill the requirements of the Arizona criminal justice academy, the Arizona board of regents shall establish a process for assessing the student's ability to repay the financial assistance received and shall determine any terms of repayment.

7. The Arizona board of regents shall establish a process for deferring service or repayment based on factors adopted by the board.

E. The Arizona criminal justice academy fund is established consisting of legislative appropriations, gifts and grants. Monies in the fund are continuously appropriated and are exempt from the provisions of section 35-190 relating to lapsing of appropriations. The Arizona board of regents shall administer the fund and shall establish criteria for distributing monies in the fund to eligible postsecondary institutions each fiscal year to fund the costs of the academy. Monies in the fund may be used only for:

1. Reimbursing Arizona criminal justice academy scholarships that cover the balance of tuition and fees for students who are enrolled in the Arizona criminal justice academy after all other gifts and aid received. Reimbursement for an Arizona criminal justice academy scholarship provided by a degree-granting private postsecondary educational institution may not exceed the remainder of the average in-state tuition and fees charged by universities under the jurisdiction of the Arizona board of regents minus other gifts and aid awarded to the student.

2. Induction services for Arizona criminal justice academy graduates.

3. Implementing a marketing and promotion plan to recruit and retain students in the Arizona criminal justice academy with particular emphasis on ensuring that participants reflect the diversity of this state's population and administering the Arizona criminal justice academy. Annual expenditures for marketing, promoting and administering the Arizona criminal justice academy may not exceed three percent of the monies in the fund each fiscal year.

F. Monies remaining in the Arizona criminal justice academy fund at the end of each fiscal year may be used by eligible postsecondary institutions for Arizona criminal justice academy costs in the next fiscal year.

G. On or before March 1, 2024 and each year thereafter, the Arizona board of regents shall report to the joint legislative budget committee and the governor's office of strategic planning and budgeting on all of the following:

1. The total number of students enrolled in the Arizona criminal justice academy by eligible postsecondary institution in the current academic year.

2. The number of Arizona criminal justice academy graduates receiving induction services in the current academic year.

3. The estimated amount of monies committed from the Arizona criminal justice academy fund in the current fiscal year.

H. On or before September 1, 2024 and each year thereafter, the Arizona board of regents shall report to the governor, the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives, and shall submit a copy to the secretary of state, on all of the following:

1. The total number of students enrolled in the Arizona criminal justice academy at each eligible postsecondary institution by year of college enrollment.

2. The percentage of students who completed each year of the academy and who plan to continue to the subsequent year, delineated by each criminal justice program offered by each eligible postsecondary institution as part of the Arizona criminal justice academy.

3. The number of criminal justice professionals who completed a program of study through the Arizona criminal justice academy by each eligible postsecondary institution.

4. The number of criminal justice professionals currently working in this state as part of an agreement for receiving an Arizona criminal justice academy scholarship.

5. The number of graduates receiving induction services.

6. The number of students who defaulted on their obligation and who are in repayment agreements.

7. The number of students who have deferred repayment agreements.

8. The number of students who completed repayment agreements.

9. The methodology for distributing any monies appropriated for the Arizona criminal justice academy to each eligible postsecondary institution and the amounts distributed to each.

10. The amount of unused monies in the Arizona criminal justice academy fund from the prior fiscal year.

I. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Criminal justice agency" has the same meaning prescribed in section 41-1750.

2. "Eligible postsecondary institution" means:

(a) A university under the jurisdiction of the Arizona board of regents.

(b) A community college in this state that offers criminal justice programs.

(c) A degree granting private postsecondary educational institution in this state that offers one or more criminal justice programs as described in subsection B of this section if the institution opts to participate in the Arizona criminal justice academy.

3. "Tuition and fees" means tuition, mandatory fees and program fees that are associated with a program in the Arizona criminal justice academy and that are charged by an eligible postsecondary institution. END_STATUTE