State Seal2 copy            Bill Number: S.B. 1530

            Bradley Floor Amendment #2

            Reference to: printed bill

            Amendment drafted by: Roxanna Pitones

 

 

FLOOR AMENDMENT EXPLANATION

 

 

 


 

Fifty-third Legislature                                                   Bradley

First Regular Session                                                   S.B. 1530

 

BRADLEY FLOOR AMENDMENT #2

SENATE AMENDMENTS TO S.B. 1530

(Reference to printed bill)

 

 


Page 30, after line 41, insert:

"Sec. 7.  Section 15-2402, Arizona Revised Statutes, as amended by Laws 2017, chapter 139, section 2, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE15-2402.  Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts; funds; annual report

A.  Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts are established to provide options for the education of students in this state.

B.  To enroll a qualified student for an empowerment scholarship account, the parent of the qualified student must sign an agreement to do all of the following:

1.  Use a portion of the empowerment scholarship account monies allocated annually to provide an education for the qualified student in at least the subjects of reading, grammar, mathematics, social studies and science.

2.  Not enroll the qualified student in a school district or charter school and release the school district from all obligations to educate the qualified student.  This paragraph does not relieve the school district or charter school that the qualified student previously attended from the obligation to conduct an evaluation pursuant to section 15‑766.

3.  Not accept a scholarship from a school tuition organization pursuant to title 43 concurrently with an empowerment scholarship account for the qualified student during the same time the qualified student is actively enrolled in an empowerment scholarship account.  The department may request the qualified school to provide confirmation that the qualified student is in compliance with this paragraph.

4.  Use the money deposited in the qualified student's Arizona empowerment scholarship account only for the following expenses of the qualified student:

(a)  Tuition or fees at a qualified school.

(b)  Textbooks required by a qualified school.

(c)  If the qualified student meets any of the criteria specified in section 15‑2401, paragraph 7, subdivision (a), item (i), (ii) or (iii) as determined by a school district or by an independent third party pursuant to section 15‑2403, subsection I, the qualified student may use the following additional services:

(i)  Educational therapies from a licensed or accredited practitioner or provider.

(ii)  A licensed or accredited paraprofessional or educational aide.

(iii)  Tuition for vocational and life skills education approved by the department.

(iv)  Associated services that include educational and psychological evaluations, assistive technology rentals and braille translation services approved by the department.

(d)  Tutoring or teaching services provided by an individual or facility accredited by a state, regional or national accrediting organization.

(e)  Curricula.

(f)  Tuition or fees for a nonpublic online learning program.

(g)  Fees for a nationally standardized norm-referenced achievement test, an advanced placement examination or any exams related to college or university admission or any examination pursuant to paragraph 7 of this subsection.

(h)  Tuition or fees at an eligible postsecondary institution.

(i)  Textbooks required by an eligible postsecondary institution.

(j)  Fees for management of the empowerment scholarship account.

(k)  Services provided by a public school, including individual classes and extracurricular programs.

(l)  Insurance or surety bond payments.

(m)  Uniforms purchased from or through a qualified school.

5.  Not file an affidavit of intent to homeschool pursuant to section 15‑802, subsection B, paragraph 2 or 3.

6.  Not use monies deposited in the qualified student's account for any of the following:

(a)  Computer hardware or other technological devices.

(b)  Transportation of the pupil.

(c)  Consumable educational supplies, including paper, pens or markers.

7.  Beginning in the 2017-2018 school year and each year thereafter, annually have a qualified student who pays tuition as a full-time student at a qualified school and who is in any of grades three through twelve take any nationally standardized norm-referenced achievement examination, an advanced placement examination that assesses reading and mathematics, the statewide assessment pursuant to section 15-741 or any examination related to college or university admissions that assesses reading and mathematics the menu of locally procured achievement assessments approved by the state board of education prescribed in section 15‑741.02.  Each qualified school shall report these test results to the state board of education and the state board of education shall include these results for qualified schools in the annual report prescribed in section 15‑743, subsection A and shall calculate test results from qualified schools in the statewide averages prescribed in section 15‑743, subsection A.  A qualified student may meet the requirements of this paragraph by taking an examination that is chosen and administered by a qualified school, or a parent may choose a separate examination pursuant to this paragraph that is administered outside of the qualified school.  The examination results shall be reported to the parent of the student.  This paragraph does not apply to:

(a)  A student who is identified as having a disability under section 504 of the rehabilitation act of 1973 (29 United States Code section 794).

(b)  A student who is identified by a school district or independent third party pursuant to section 15-2403, subsection I as a child with a disability as defined in section 15-731 or 15-761.

(c)  A child with a disability who is eligible to receive services from a school district under section 15-763.

C.  In exchange for the parent's agreement pursuant to subsection B of this section, the department of education shall transfer from the monies that would otherwise be allocated to a recipient's prior school district or charter school, or if the child is currently eligible to attend kindergarten, the monies that the department of education determines would otherwise be allocated to a recipient's expected school district of attendance, to the treasurer for deposit into an Arizona empowerment scholarship account an amount that is equivalent to ninety percent of the sum of the base support level and additional assistance prescribed in sections 15‑185 and 15‑943 for that particular student based on whether the student was previously attending either a charter school or a school district.  Notwithstanding any other law, the funding level for a student who is a recipient of an empowerment scholarship account on or before June 30, 2017 may not be reduced.  The department of education may retain up to five percent of the sum of the base support level and additional assistance prescribed in sections 15‑185 and 15‑943 for each student with an empowerment scholarship account for deposit in the department of education empowerment scholarship account fund established by subsection E of this section, out of which the department of education shall transfer one percent of the sum of the base support level and additional assistance prescribed in sections 15‑185 and 15‑943 for each student with an empowerment scholarship account to the treasurer for deposit in the state treasurer empowerment scholarship account fund established by subsection F of this section and out of which the department of education shall transfer an additional one percent of the sum of the base support level and additional assistance prescribed in sections 15‑185 and 15‑943 for each student with an empowerment scholarship account to the department of revenue for deposit in the department of revenue empowerment scholarship account fund established by subsection G of this section.

D.  Notwithstanding subsection C of this section, for a student whom the department of revenue determines to be a low-income student, and in exchange for the parent's agreement pursuant to subsection B of this section, the department of education shall transfer from the monies that would otherwise be allocated to a recipient's prior school district or charter school, or if the child is currently eligible to attend kindergarten, the monies that the department of education determines would otherwise be allocated to a recipient's expected school district of attendance, to the treasurer for deposit in an Arizona empowerment scholarship account an amount that is equivalent to one hundred percent of the sum of the base support level and additional assistance prescribed in sections 15‑185 and 15‑943 for that particular student based on whether the student was previously attending either a charter school or a school district.

E.  The department of education empowerment scholarship account fund is established consisting of monies retained by the department pursuant to subsection C of this section.  The department shall administer the fund. Monies in the fund are subject to legislative appropriation.  Monies in the fund shall be used for the department's costs in administering empowerment scholarship accounts under this chapter.  Monies in the fund are exempt from the provisions of section 35‑190 relating to lapsing of appropriations.  If the number of empowerment scholarship accounts significantly increases after fiscal year 2012‑2013, the department may request an increase in the amount appropriated to the fund in any subsequent fiscal year in the budget estimate submitted pursuant to section 35‑113.

F.  The state treasurer empowerment scholarship account fund is established consisting of monies transferred by the department to the state treasurer pursuant to subsection C of this section.  The state treasurer shall administer the fund.  Monies in the fund shall be used for the state treasurer's costs in administering the empowerment scholarship accounts under this chapter.  If the number of empowerment scholarship accounts significantly increases after fiscal year 2013‑2014, the state treasurer may request an increase in the amount appropriated to the fund in any subsequent fiscal year in the budget estimate submitted pursuant to section 35‑113.  Monies in the fund are subject to legislative appropriation. Monies in the fund are exempt from the provisions of section 35‑190 relating to lapsing of appropriations.

G.  The department of revenue empowerment scholarship account fund is established consisting of monies transferred by the department of education to the department of revenue pursuant to subsection C of this section.  The department of revenue shall administer the fund.  Monies in the fund shall be used for the department of revenue's costs in administering the empowerment scholarship accounts under this chapter.  If the number of empowerment scholarship accounts significantly increases, the department of revenue may request an increase in the amount appropriated to the fund in any subsequent fiscal year in the budget estimate submitted pursuant to section 35‑113.  Monies in the fund are subject to legislative appropriation.  Monies in the fund are exempt from the provisions of section 35‑190 relating to lapsing of appropriations.

H.  A parent must renew the qualified student's empowerment scholarship account on an annual basis.  A student who has previously qualified for an empowerment scholarship account remains eligible to apply for renewal until the student graduates from high school, obtains a general equivalency diploma or reaches twenty‑two years of age if the student continues to be enrolled in a qualified school.  The department may request confirmation of a qualified student's progress toward graduation from high school or the completion of a general equivalency diploma.  A qualified student who is at least eighteen years of age and who has been deemed eligible to receive educational therapies or services pursuant to section 15-2403, subsection I or has been identified as a student with a disability pursuant to section 15-2401, paragraph 7, subdivision (a), item (i), (ii) or (iii) remains eligible to apply for renewal until the qualified student reaches twenty‑two years of age or obtains a general equivalence diploma without being enrolled in a qualified school if the qualified student continues to use at least fifty percent of available empowerment scholarship account monies annually for eligible purchases pursuant to subsection B, paragraph 4, subdivision (c) of this section.  The department may remove qualified students who are not in compliance with this subsection from the program in the subsequent year.

I.  A signed agreement under this section constitutes school attendance required by section 15‑802.

J.  A qualified school or a provider of services purchased pursuant to subsection B, paragraph 4 of this section may not share, refund or rebate any Arizona empowerment scholarship account monies with the parent or qualified student in any manner.

K.  On the qualified student's graduation from a postsecondary institution or after any period of four consecutive years after high school graduation in which the student is not enrolled in an eligible postsecondary institution, the qualified student's Arizona empowerment scholarship account shall be closed and any remaining funds shall be returned to the state.

L.  Monies received pursuant to this article do not constitute taxable income to the parent of the qualified student.

M.  The department of revenue and the department of education shall develop a process and procedures to determine whether a student may be classified as a low-income student for the purposes of funding levels.  The department of education may request the department of revenue to verify the income level of a parent using already‑available information and data at the department of revenue.  The department of revenue may verify only the qualified student's eligibility or ineligibility for increased funding and may not transfer any other income data to the department of education.  The department of education shall allow applicants to designate whether they would like to be classified as low‑income for the purposes of funding for an empowerment scholarship account.  The department of revenue and the department of education may develop alternative forms of income verification for families that are not required by law to file state income tax returns.  If the department of revenue subsequently receives information that indicates a student should not have been classified as a low‑income student, the department of revenue shall notify the department of education.  A student who is subsequently not classified as low-income shall be funded at the level prescribed pursuant to subsection C of this section.  A student may begin and continue to receive the regular level of funding pursuant to subsection C of this section on signing the agreement to enroll in an empowerment scholarship account and may be subsequently increased to the level of funding pursuant to subsection D of this section if the student is deemed a low‑income student.

N.  The department shall allow an applicant for an empowerment scholarship account to identify all potentially applicable enrollment eligibility criteria during the application process and may not restrict the applicant to the identification of a single enrollment eligibility criterion.  Beginning October 1, 2017, the department shall allow an applicant for an empowerment scholarship account or a current empowerment scholarship account holder to give written consent and identify a third party to assist the applicant or qualified student in the application process or interacting with the department on the applicant's or account holder's behalf.  For the purposes of this subsection, "third party" means any nonprofit or private entity, including a qualified school.

O.  In addition to the reporting requirements prescribed in subsection B, paragraph 7 of this section and notwithstanding section 15‑2404, a qualified school that enrolls fifty or more qualified students and that administers any nationally standardized norm-referenced achievement examination, an advanced placement examination that assesses reading and mathematics, the statewide assessment pursuant to section 15‑741 or any examination related to college or university admissions that assesses reading and mathematics shall annually make available to the public on request or on the qualified school's website the aggregate test scores of all students who take STATEWIDE assessment pursuant to section 15‑741 or the menu of locally procured achievement assessments approved by the state board of education pursuant to section 15‑741.02.  A network of qualified schools may satisfy this requirement by publishing the aggregate test scores by grade level for all schools within the network.

P.  Beginning in fiscal year 2022‑2023, the number of empowerment scholarship accounts approved by the department each FISCAL year may not exceed the total number of empowerment scholarship accounts approved by the department during the 2021‑2022 school year.

Q.  The department shall submit an annual report to the governor, the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives and shall provide a copy of this report to the secretary of state that includes the following information:

1.  The postal zip code of children who are enrolled in empowerment scholarship accounts.

2.  The annual family income of children who are enrolled in empowerment scholarship accounts.

3.  The racial demographics of children who are enrolled in empowerment scholarship accounts.

4.  A full and accurate list of every qualified school that enrolls children with empowerment scholarship accounts." END_STATUTE

Renumber to conform

Amend title to conform


 

 

DAVID BRADLEY

 

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