HB2311 - 562R

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

Section 1. Section 15-184, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE15-184. Charter schools; admissions requirements; parental classroom visits

A. A charter school shall enroll all eligible pupils who submit a timely application, unless the number of applications exceeds the capacity of a program, class, grade level or building.

B. A charter school shall give enrollment preference to pupils who are returning to the charter school in the second or any subsequent year of its operation and to siblings of pupils who are already enrolled in the charter school.

C. A charter school may give enrollment preference to children who are in foster care or meet the definition of unaccompanied youth prescribed in the McKinney-Vento homeless assistance act (42 United States Code section 11434a).

D. A charter school may give enrollment preference to and reserve capacity for pupils who either:

1. Are children, grandchildren or legal wards of any of the following:

(a) Employees of the school.

(b) Employees of the charter holder.

(d) Directors, officers, partners or board members of the charter holder.

2. Attended another charter school or are the siblings of that pupil if the charter school previously attended by the pupil has the identical charter holder, board and governing board membership as the enrolling charter school or is managed by the same educational management organization, charter management organization or educational service provider as determined by the charter authorizer.

3. Are children of a member of the armed forces of the United States who either is on active duty or was killed in the line of duty.

E. If remaining capacity is insufficient to enroll all pupils who submit a timely application, the charter school shall select pupils through an equitable selection process such as a lottery except that preference shall be given to siblings of a pupil who is selected through an equitable selection process such as a lottery.

F. Except as provided in subsections A through D of this section, a charter school shall not limit admission based on ethnicity, national origin, gender, income level, disabling condition, proficiency in the English language or athletic ability.

G. A charter school may limit admission to pupils within a given age group or grade level.

H. A charter school may provide instruction to pupils of a single gender with the approval of the sponsor of the charter school. An existing charter school may amend its charter to provide instruction to pupils of a single gender and, if approved by the sponsor of the charter school, may provide instruction to pupils of a single gender at the beginning of the next school year.

I. A charter school may refuse to admit any pupil who has been expelled from another educational institution or who is in the process of being expelled from another educational institution.

J. A charter school governing body must develop and adopt in a public meeting policies to allow for visits, tours and observations of all classrooms by parents of enrolled pupils and parents who wish to enroll their children in the charter school unless a visit, tour or observation threatens the health and safety of pupils and staff. These policies and procedures must be easily accessible from the home page on each school's website. END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Section 15-816.01, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE15-816.01. Open enrollment policies; preference; selection process; transportation; reporting requirements; public awareness effort

A. School district governing boards shall establish policies and shall implement an open enrollment policy without charging tuition. Tuition may be charged to nonresident pupils only if the tuition is authorized under section 15-764, subsection C, section 15-797, subsection C, section 15-823, subsection A, section 15-824, subsection A or section 15-825 or if two school districts have entered into a voluntary agreement for the payment of tuition for certain pupils. These policies shall include the information required by subsection I of this section, basic information that is needed to request enrollment and that is consistent with guidance and state and federal law regarding pupil privacy and civil rights, and information regarding the provision of transportation or resources for transportation. The policies must be easily accessible from the home page on each school's website and be available in English and in Spanish or in any other language used by a majority of the populations served by the school or school district. A school district shall update on each school's website the school's capacity and whether the school is currently accepting open enrollment students, by grade level, at least once every twelve weeks unless there are no changes to report for the individual school. If a school has any other separate capacity by specialized program, the information required pursuant to this subsection shall also be posted by specialized program. Schools shall accept pupils throughout the school year as capacity allows. Pupils who are denied access due to capacity shall be informed that they are on a wait list and of the details regarding the process prescribed in subsection E of this section. Pupils shall be selected as seats become available.

B. A school district shall enroll at any time any resident pupil who applies for enrollment to the school district pursuant to this section. A school district shall give enrollment preference to and reserve capacity for all of the following:

1. Resident pupils.

2. Pupils returning to the school from the prior year.

3. Siblings of pupils already enrolled.

C. A school district may give enrollment preference to children who:

1. Are in foster care.

2. Meet the definition of unaccompanied youth prescribed in the McKinney-Vento homeless assistance act (P.L. 100-77; 101 Stat. 482; 42 United States Code section 11434a).

3. Attend a school that is closing.

4. Are children of a member of the armed forces of the United States who either is on active duty or was killed in the line of duty.

D. A school district may give enrollment preference to and reserve capacity for all of the following:

1. Pupils who are children of persons who are employed by or at a school in the school district.

2. Resident transfer pupils and their siblings.

3. Pupils who meet additional criteria established and published by the school district governing board pursuant to subsection A of this section.

E. If remaining capacity at a school, as determined by the school district governing board, is insufficient to enroll all pupils who submit a timely request, the school or school district shall select pupils through an equitable selection process such as a lottery, except that preference shall be given to the siblings of a pupil selected through an equitable selection process such as a lottery.

F. Except as provided in subsections A through E of this section, a school that is operated by a school district may not limit admission based on any of the following:

1. Ethnicity or race.

2. National origin.

3. Sex.

4. Income level.

5. Disability.

6. Proficiency in the English language.

7. Athletic ability.

G. The governing board of the district educating the pupil may provide transportation limited to not more than thirty miles each way to and from the school of attendance or to and from a pickup point on a regular transportation route or for the total miles traveled each day to an adjacent district for eligible nonresident pupils who meet the economic eligibility requirements established under the national school lunch and child nutrition acts (42 United States Code sections 1751 through 1793) for free or reduced-price lunches.

H. The governing board of the district educating the pupil shall provide transportation limited to not more than thirty miles each way to and from the school of attendance or to and from a pickup point on a regular transportation route or for the total miles traveled each day to an adjacent district for nonresident pupils with disabilities whose individualized education program specifies that transportation is necessary to fulfill the program.

I. The state board of education shall adopt a model format that school districts may use for describing open enrollment options to ensure clarity and consistency for parents in understanding their enrollment options as described in this section and enrollment capacity at each school, including the ability to choose any school within the school district of residence or any other school district in this state. The state board of education shall adopt rules, policies and guidance consistent with state and federal law for school districts to use while enrolling students pursuant to this article. Pursuant to the supervisory duties of the superintendent of public instruction, the department of education shall investigate and enforce any complaints that the department receives or substantiated claims of unlawful or inappropriate enrollment practices by school districts pursuant to state and federal law and shall refer any complaints received regarding charter schools to the state board for charter schools to investigate and enforce. The department of education shall regularly update the state board of education on its investigations pursuant to this subsection.

J. The department of education shall provide an annual report that informs the public and policymakers of the open enrollment participation rate by school district, school and county, including the number of pupils, by student subgroup designation, in each school and school district that are open enrolled as resident pupils, resident transfer pupils or nonresident pupils for each school district and the school districts and zip codes from which students are enrolling. By fiscal year 2022-2023, this participation report shall also include the number of pupils enrolled in charter schools and the school districts from which those pupils are enrolling.

K. Subject to the availability of appropriated monies, each January the state board of education shall design a public awareness effort to distribute materials that do all of the following:

1. Communicate to the public the ability to choose any public school in this state.

2. Direct the public to resources to learn about school choice options in this state.

3. Instruct the public how to request enrollment for pupils.

L. The state board of education may include other options in its informational materials and messaging developed under subsection K of this section.

M. In designing the public awareness effort and distributing materials under subsection K of this section, the state board of education may collaborate with both:

1. Public and private partners to assist the state board in achieving the objectives prescribed in subsection K of this section.

2. The department of education in providing parents and the public with informational resources. END_STATUTE