A variety of education bills move between the Arizona House and Senate. If these bills pass in their respective chambers, they will then be redirected to Gov. Doug Ducey who will decide whether or not to sign them into Arizona law.
To track the status of these bills or any other active bills within the Arizona legislature, visit the legislature’s website.
Here’s a brief rundown of the education bills that passed in the House and are being debated in the Senate in the following weeks:
House Bill 2020
Introduced by Republican Rep. Michelle Udall, HB 2020 would allow public schools to offer discounted child care services for employees of the school. Currently, schools that offer child care services before or after the school day do not have the legal right to offer discounted child care rates to employees of the school. With the passage of this bill, employees of the school would be able to receive child care services at discounted rates so long as the cost of the services is not “grossly disproportionate to the total consideration received from the employee,” according to the text of the bill. HB 2020 was passed in the House and transmitted to the Senate on Jan. 28. It was passed in both the majority and minority caucuses in the Senate on March 9 and is awaiting a third read.
House Bill 2021
Introduced by Republican Rep. Michelle Udall, HB 2021 aims to amend the maximum amount of credits awarded for students taking dual credit courses. Originally, for every three semester hours of credit that a student completed, they were awarded at most 0.5 Carnegie units. However, with the passage of this bill, a student would instead be awarded at least 0.5 Carnegie units, and the student could earn up to one whole Carnegie unit. Additionally, the bill would allow freshman and sophomore high school students to take dual enrollment courses in addition to junior and senior year students. HB 2021 passed in the House and has entered the Senate. HB 2021 was given a do pass recommendation in both the majority and minority caucuses in the Senate on March 9 and is awaiting a third read.
House Bill 2055
Introduced by Republican Rep. Steve Kaiser, HB 2055 seeks to amend the Career and Technical Education Projects Fund’s uses to include student organizations. If passed, the bill would allow parts of the fund to be allocated to approved student organizations within career and technical education programs. These expenses may include the costs to cover events, competitions, or conferences. Additionally, the bill states that should the Career and Technical Education Projects Fund exceed the cap of $100,000 at the end of the fiscal year, any additional money will be taken out of the fund and subsequently allocated to the maintenance and operation fund. HB 2055 was passed in the House and transmitted to the Senate on Feb 17. It is awaiting passage in the rules committee before it can undergo a third read.
House Bill 2210
Introduced by Democratic Rep. Daniel Hernandez Jr., HB 2210 seeks to amend the discretionary powers of the governing board to include the power to provide food and beverages at school district events. The text of the bill reads, “subject to policies adopted by the department of education, provide food and beverages at school district events, including official school functions and trainings.” HB 2210 was passed in the House and was transmitted to the Senate on Feb. 5. It has already been passed in the Senate education committee and is awaiting passage in the Senate rules committee before it undergoes a third read.
House Bill 2241
Introduced by Democratic Rep. Alma Hernandez, HB 2241 seeks to educate children about the Holocaust and genocides in history. As of now, there is no legislation requiring that schools teach specifically about the Holocaust or other genocides. If passed, this bill would require that students be taught about these historical events at least twice between seventh and 12th grade. HB 2241 passed in the House and was transmitted to the Senate on Feb. 4. It has been passed in the Senate education committee and is awaiting passage in the Senate rules committee before it undergoes a third read.
House Bill 2705
Introduced by former Democratic Rep. Arlando Teller, HB 2705 intends to amend school dress code guidelines so that no school may discriminate against Native American students. The text of the bill states that no district governing board, charter school governing body nor any public school may prohibit a student who is part of a federally recognized Indian tribe from “wearing traditional tribal regalia or objects of cultural significance at a graduation ceremony.” Additionally, the bill clarifies that an eagle feather or eagle plume are included in the definition of “traditional tribal regalia.” HB 2705 has already passed in the House and was passed by both the majority and the minority caucuses in the Senate on March 9. It is currently awaiting a third read.
Senate Bill 1028
Introduced by Republican Sen. Nancy Barto, SB 1028 seeks to establish a “Study Committee on Alternative Assessment” that will work to ensure that Arizona’s special needs students are being given a high-quality education and that their needs are being met. The newfound study committee would consist of three senators, three representatives, two special education teachers, two parents of students with special needs, one district superintendent, the superintendent of public instruction or the superintendent’s appointee, and one person with “expertise in alternative assessments” according to the text of the bill. The committee would work together to improve the quality of education for students with special needs and develop a “parent guidebook.” If passed, this committee will report their findings to the governor, the superintendent of public instruction, the secretary of state, and both chambers of the Arizona legislature by Dec. 1, 2021. SB 1028 was passed in both the House and Senate and was transmitted back to the Senate on March 11.
Senate Bill 1097
Introduced by Democratic Sen. Sean Bowie, SB 1097 seeks to establish mental and behavioral health as a valid reason for a student between kindergarten and eighth grade to be absent from school. The text of the bill itself reads, “the department of education shall identify an absence due to the mental or behavioral health of a pupil as an excused absence.” SB 1097 was passed in both the House and Senate and was transmitted back to the House on March 11.
Senate Bill 1139
Introduced by Republican Sen. Paul Boyer, SB 1139 aims to strike the clause of the classroom site fund bill that delegates where portions of the fund must be allocated. As of now, money from the classroom site fund must be allocated very specifically: 40% going toward teacher compensation based on performance, 40% going toward maintenance, and 20% going toward teacher base pay salary increase. The purpose of SB 1139 is to strike these mandatory allocations so that school districts and charter schools can allocate the money where they see fit. SB 1139 was passed in both the House and Senate and was transmitted back to the Senate on March 11.
Senate Bill 1165
Introduced by Republican Sen. Paul Boyer, SB 1165 aims to give school districts and charter schools a temporary break from conducting performance evaluations on school principals or certified teachers during the 2020-2021 school year. The bill text reads, “a regular evaluation for effectiveness in the 2020-2021 school year is not required for a teacher to be eligible to receive performance pay from the classroom site fund.” SB 1165 was passed in both the House and Senate and was transmitted back to the Senate on March 11.
Senate Bill 1179
Introduced by Republican Sen. J.D. Mesnard, SB 1179 amends the provisions that career and technical education districts are subject to and includes students in grades nine and students one year past graduation to be eligible for an average daily membership. This bill would restore funding so that any high school student would be able to enroll in a certified and technical education program, in addition to students who have just graduated. However, funding would only be provided to students for four years of the program and no more, meaning that a freshman would not be eligible to be funded past their graduation year. SB 1179 was passed in the Senate and was transmitted to the House on Feb. 16. It has been passed in the House education committee and is awaiting passage in the House rules committee and the House appropriations committee before it undergoes a third read.
Senate Bill 1301
Introduced by newly-elected Republican Sen. T.J. Shope, SB 1301 seeks to establish a sixth area health education center focused on the “Indian health care delivery system.” Currently, there are five area health education centers within the University of Arizona College of Medicine. Each of the five centers focuses its efforts on a region within Arizona with a population that “lacks services by the health care professions.” SB 1301 proposes that the center create a sixth center which “shall focus on the Indian health care delivery system,” according to the text of the bill. Sen. Shope was contacted for clarification but did not respond for comment.
SB 1301 was passed in the Senate and was transmitted to the House on Feb 22. On March 9, the bill was passed in both the majority and minority caucuses in the House and is currently awaiting a third read.
Senate Bill 1376
Introduced by Democratic Sen. Sean Bowie, SB 1376 seeks to incorporate mental health instruction into the curriculum of Arizona students, either within an existing health education class or another existing course. If passed, the state board of education would be required to consult with mental health experts and representatives from the department of health services, Arizona-based mental health advocacy organizations and the department of education in order to create a curriculum that adequately addresses both mental health and the connection between physical well-being and mental well-being.
SB 1376 was passed in the Senate and transmitted to the House on Feb. 16. The bill was passed by the House education committee and is awaiting passage in the House rules committee before it can undergo a third read.
Senate Bill 1456
Introduced by Republican Senator Nancy Barto, SB 1456 aims to change Arizona’s sexual education program by having parents opt-in on behalf of their children rather than opt-out. Additionally, the bill states that public schools and charter schools are not required to offer sexual education courses. The bill text says, “a public educational institution shall obtain signed, written consent from a student’s parent or guardian before doing […] the following: […] Providing sex education instruction or instruction regarding sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression to the student.”
SB 1456 was passed in the Senate transmitted to the House on March 4. It was given a second read in the House on March 15 and is awaiting debate in its assigned committees.
Contact the reporter at clparri2@asu.edu.
Cami is Downtown Devil's co-executive editor. Cami is a third-year student studying print journalism and political science. When she's not writing or editing, she enjoys hosting radio shows, playing piano and bass, and teaching art classes at a local art studio.
