ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Fifty-sixth Legislature

First Regular Session

House: ED DPA/SE 10-0-0-0 | 3rd Read 59-0-1-0

Senate: ED DPA 7-0-0-0 | 3rd Read 16-14-0-0

Final Read: 54-4-2-0

HB 2060: charter schools; financial requirements; revisions

NOW: schools; requirements; revisions

Sponsor: Representative Grantham, LD 14

Transmitted to the Governor

Overview

Modifies website posting, early literacy, parental rights handbook and records requirements for school districts, schools operated by a school district (district schools) and charter schools.

History

Numerous statutes require school districts, district schools and charter schools to post, display or make accessible information on their websites, such as: 1) policies for reporting crimes; 2) the parental rights handbook; 3) policies for parental classroom visits; and 4) average teacher salary data (A.R.S. §§ 15-153, 15-189.05, 15-249.16, 15-341, 15-903).

Each school district and charter school must ensure that at least one kindergarten through 3rd grade teacher in each school has received dyslexia training that complies with statutory requirements (A.R.S. § 15-211). State Board of Education (SBE) rules must allow certificated teachers and administrators to count training regarding screening, intervention, accommodation, use of technology and advocacy for students with reading impairments (including dyslexia) as continuing education credits (A.R.S. § 15-219).

SBE is tasked with providing for the universal screening of students in preschool and kindergarten programs and the 1st-3rd grades to identify students with reading deficiencies (A.R.S. § 15-701). Laws 2021, Chapter 434 directs SBE, beginning the 2022-2023 school year, to adopt a statewide kindergarten entry evaluation tool to administer to kindergarten students within 45 days after the beginning of the school year or after a student enrolls). Each school district or charter school must administer the kindergarten entry evaluation tool adopted by SBE (A.R.S. § 15-704).

Laws 2020, Chapter 64 directs the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) to establish and post on its website a parental rights handbook. This handbook must contain specific statutes relating to parental rights as outlined (A.R.S. § 15-249.16).

Provisions

Website Posting

1.   Authorizes a school district, district school or a charter school to:

a)   ☐ Prop 105 (45 votes) ☐ Prop 108 (40 votes) ☐ Emergency (40 votes) ☐ Fiscal Notesatisfy any statutory requirement to post, prominently display, make accessible or otherwise include specified information on its website by making a link to the information available on its home page; and

b)   consolidate all information that it is statutorily required to post, prominently display, make accessible or otherwise include on its website on a single webpage and post a link to that webpage on its home page. (Sec. 1)

Early Literacy

2.   Allows each school district and charter school to fulfill dyslexia training requirements by ensuring that at least one literacy coach or literacy specialist at each school has received the prescribed training. (Sec. 3)

3.   Directs SBE to adopt rules to allow literacy coaches and literacy specialists to count specified training for students with reading impairments as continuing education credits. (Sec. 4)

4.   Allows, rather than requires, SBE to adopt a kindergarten entry evaluation tool and declares school districts and charter schools are not required to administer this tool. (Sec. 7)

5.   Directs each school district governing board (governing board) and charter school governing body (governing body) to select appropriate evaluation methods or assessments, or both, to administer to kindergarten students to identify students who have reading deficiencies. (Sec. 7, 8)

6.   Requires the school district or charter school to administer the evaluation tool selected by the governing board or governing body within outlined timeframes. (Sec. 7)

Parental Rights Handbook

7.   Reorganizes the requirement that ADE develop a parental rights handbook by directing ADE to develop a handbook for parents of children enrolled in school districts and a handbook for parents of children enrolled in charter schools. (Sec. 5)

8.   Outlines the statutes included in the charter school parental rights handbook. (Sec. 5)

Records Requirements

9.   Requires a charter school or governing board to collect and maintain, rather than keep in the personnel file, educational and teaching background and experience information for each teacher as specified. (Sec. 2, 6)

10.  Deletes the requirement that a charter school or school district inform parents and guardians of the availability of the teacher background information and expands the permissible ways this information must be shared by allowing the school district or charter school to post the information on its website. (Sec. 2, 6)

11.  Extends the time in which a school must request a certified copy of a transfer student's record from 5 to 10 school days after enrolling the transfer student. (Sec. 9)

12.  Removes language that requires a school requesting a transfer student's record to exercise due diligence in obtaining a copy of the record. (Sec. 9)

Miscellaneous

13.  Removes the requirement that a school district's budget format include a statement identifying the number of full-time equivalent certified employees. (Sec. 10)

14.  Amends the FY 2024 General Appropriations Act by directing the Arizona Department of Administration to distribute the $300,000 appropriated to the Kirkland School District to the Skull Valley School District instead. (Sec. 11)

15.  Makes technical changes. (Sec. 5, 7, 9, 10)

16.  Makes conforming changes. (Sec. 2, 4, 5, 6, 10)

 

 

 

 

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                        HB 2060

Initials CH       Page 0 Transmitted

 

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