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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, First Regular Session
K-12 education; 2024-2025.
Purpose
Makes statutory and session law changes relating to K-12 education necessary to implement the FY 2025 state budget.
Background
The Arizona Constitution prohibits substantive law from being included in the general appropriations, capital outlay appropriations and supplemental appropriations bills. However, it is often necessary to make statutory and session law changes to effectuate the budget. Thus, separate bills called budget reconciliation bills (BRBs) are introduced to enact these provisions. Because BRBs contain substantive law changes, the Arizona Constitution provides that they become effective on the general effective date, unless an emergency clause is enacted.
S.B. 1744 contains the budget reconciliation provisions for changes relating to K-12 education.
Provisions
Basic State Aid
1. Increases the base level for FY 2025 from $4,914.71 to $5,013.00.
2. Increases the charter additional assistance amount per student count for FY 2025:
a) from $2,049.12 to $2,090.10, for students in preschool programs for children with disabilities, kindergarten programs and grades 1 through 8; and
b) from $2,388.21 to $2,435.97, for students in grades 9 through 12.
3. Increases the transportation support level formula per-route-mile amount for FY 2025 as follows:
|
FY 2024 |
FY 2025 |
|
|
0.5 or less |
2.89 |
2.95 |
|
Between 0.5 and 1.0 |
2.37 |
2.42 |
|
Over 1.0 |
2.89 |
2.95 |
Empowerment Scholarship Account Monies
4. Requires the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) to:
a) establish and maintain an online database of allowable and disallowed categories of Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) expenses;
b) provide a link to the database on ADE's website; and
c) allow the use of ESA monies to reimburse a qualified student or a qualified student's parent for the purchase of a good or educational service.
5. Specifies that the use of ESA monies for tuition or fees at a qualified school must only be used at a qualified school that requires all teaching staff and personnel who have unsupervised contact with students to be fingerprinted.
6. Specifies that the use of ESA monies for tutoring or teaching services provided by an individual must be used only for tutoring or teaching services provided by an individual who is not subject to disciplinary action by the State Board of Education (SBE) for immoral or unprofessional conduct.
7. Requires ADE to:
a) ensure that any individual who provides tutoring or teaching services to qualified students is not subject to disciplinary action by the SBE; and
b) remove any individual who is subject to disciplinary action by the SBE from all platforms ADE provides to parents and qualified students for the purchase of educational goods or services using ESA monies.
ESA Delayed Enrollment Modifications
8. Allows, if an eligible ESA applicant completes an application in advance for funding to begin on a later date, ADE to enroll the applicant on the later date, unless the later date is:
a) more than two fiscal quarters after the fiscal quarter in which the application is completed; or
b) on a date that is after March 31 and before July 1.
9. Requires ADE, if an eligible ESA applicant completes an application after March 31 and before July 1, to enroll the applicant on July 1.
10. Specifies that ADE must enroll all other eligible ESA applicants when issuing the ESA award letter.
ESA Auditing and Eligibility Verification
11. Requires ADE to annually audit a sample of randomly selected ESAs to determine whether the parent or qualified student is in compliance with the terms of the contract, applicable laws, rules and orders relating to the ESA Program.
12. Requires
ADE, in consultation with the Office of the Auditor General (OAG), to develop
risk-based auditing procedures for the ESA audits.
13. Determines that the ESA of a parent or qualified student who is in good standing may be randomly selected only one time during any five-year period.
14. Directs ADE to verify that a parent's child meets the statutory requirements of a qualified student in the year for which the parent seeks to renew the child's ESA.
15. Specifies that a qualified student may not receive ESA monies while enrolled in a school district or charter school.
16. Requires ADE to annually provide an estimate of the amount required to fund the ESA Program to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) and the Governor's Office of Strategic Planning and Budgeting on September 1 and November 1, rather than to JLBC on May 30.
Arizona State School for the Deaf and the Blind
17. Removes the exemption on the Arizona State School for the Deaf and the Blind (ASDB) from participating in the State Motor Vehicle Fleet.
18. Allows ASDB, in FY 2025, to use monies appropriated from the Telecommunication Fund for the Deaf for ASDB's educational and operational costs.
Early Education and Career Exploration Program
19. Eliminates the specification that the Early Education and Career Exploration Program (Education and Career Program) and Education and Career Program Fund be utilized only in FY 2024.
20. Repeals the Education and Career Program and Education and Career Program Fund and transfers all unexpended and unencumbered Education and Career Program Fund monies to the state General Fund (state GF) on July 1, 2025.
Arizona Civics Education and Leadership Development Program
21. Eliminates the specification that the Arizona Civics Education and Leadership Development Program (Civics Development Program) and Civics Development Program Fund be utilized only in FY 2024.
22. Repeals the Civics Development Program and Civics Development Program Fund and transfers all unexpended and unencumbered Civics Development Program Fund monies to the state GF on July 1, 2025.
Adult Education and Workforce Development Programs Delayed Repeal
23. Repeals on July 1, 2025:
a) the Adult Workforce Diploma Program Fund and Community College Adult Education Workforce Development Program Fund;
b) the Continuing High School and Workforce Training Program, Adult Workforce Diploma Program and Community College Adult Education Workforce Development Program (Adult Education and Workforce Development Programs);
c) the SBE's and ADE's requirements to administer the Adult Education and Workforce Development Programs;
d) Adult Education and Workforce Development Programs schools' reporting requirements; and
e) the performance measures adopted by the SBE and ADE for the Adult Education and Workforce Development Programs.
Dual Enrollment Teacher Development Fund and Dual Enrollment Student Development Fund Repeals
24. Repeals the Dual Enrollment Teacher Development Fund, the Dual Enrollment Student Development Fund and ADE's requirements to administer such funds.
Miscellaneous
25. Sets, to March 15, the date by which a school district governing board must annually offer for the next ensuing school year:
a) a teaching contract to each continuing teacher; and
b) a teaching contract or notice of intention to not offer a teaching contract to each probationary teacher.
26. Authorizes ADE to use Failing Schools Tutoring Fund monies in FY 2025 for the following school improvements:
a) to provide assistance to school districts and charter schools for professional development and coaching for teachers and principals;
b) to monitor the progress of school districts and charter schools towards improved academic outcomes; and
c) outreach to ensure that schools and parents have access to tutoring opportunities.
27. Conforms the tax year 2024 qualifying tax rates to reflect the required truth-in-taxation rate adjustment.
28. Continues to state as the intent of the Legislature and the Governor that school districts increase the total percentage of classroom spending over the previous year’s percentages in the combined categories of instruction, student support and instructional support as prescribed by the OAG.
29. Makes technical and conforming changes.
30. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Prepared by Senate Research
June 12, 2024
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