Bill Text: AZ SB1276 | 2017 | Fifty-third Legislature 1st Regular | Introduced
Bill Title: Charter schools; special education services
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 11-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-01-26 - Senate read second time [SB1276 Detail]
Download: Arizona-2017-SB1276-Introduced.html
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REFERENCE TITLE: charter schools; special education services |
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State of Arizona Senate Fifty-third Legislature First Regular Session 2017
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SB 1276 |
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Introduced by Senators Contreras: Bradley, Cajero Bedford, Dalessandro, Hobbs, Mendez, Otondo, Peshlakai; Representatives Cardenas, Espinoza, Gabaldón
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AN ACT
amending sections 15‑182 and 15‑184, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to charter schools.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 15-182, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
15-182. State board for charter schools; membership; terms; compensation; duties
A. The state board for charter schools is established consisting of the following members:
1. The superintendent of public instruction or the superintendent's designee.
2. Six members of the general public, at least two of whom shall reside in a school district where at least sixty per cent percent of the children who attend school in the district meet the eligibility requirements established under the national school lunch and child nutrition acts (42 United States Code sections 1751 through 1785) for free lunches, and at least one of whom shall reside on an Indian reservation, who are appointed by the governor pursuant to section 38‑211.
3. Two members of the business community who are appointed by the governor pursuant to section 38‑211.
4. A teacher who provides classroom instruction at a charter school and who is appointed by the governor pursuant to section 38‑211.
5. An operator of a charter school who is appointed by the governor pursuant to section 38‑211.
6. Three members of the legislature who shall serve as advisory members and who are appointed jointly by the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives.
B. The superintendent of public instruction shall serve a term on the state board for charter schools that runs concurrently with the superintendent's term of office. The members appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 6 of this section shall serve two year two-year terms on the state board for charter schools that begin and end on the third Monday in January and that run concurrently with their respective terms of office. Members appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraphs 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this section shall serve staggered four year four-year terms that begin and end on the third Monday in January.
C. The state board for charter schools shall annually elect a president and such other officers as it deems necessary from among its membership.
D. Members of the state board for charter schools are not eligible to receive compensation but are eligible for reimbursement of expenses pursuant to title 38, chapter 4, article 2.
E. The state board for charter schools shall:
1. Exercise general supervision over charter schools that are sponsored by the board and recommend legislation pertaining to charter schools to the legislature.
2. Grant charter status to qualifying applicants for charter schools pursuant to section 15‑183.
3. Adopt and use an official seal in the authentication of its acts.
4. Keep a record of its proceedings.
5. Adopt rules for its own government.
6. Determine the policy of the board and the work undertaken by it.
7. Delegate to the superintendent of public instruction the execution of board policies.
8. Prepare a budget for expenditures necessary for the proper maintenance of the board and the accomplishment of its purpose.
9. On an annual basis, review special education admission practices of charter schools to ensure that each charter school's enrollment practices are fair and nondiscriminatory. If the state board for charter schools determines that a charter school's enrollment of special education students is more than two percent lower than that of the statewide average special education student population for school districts, that charter school shall work with the charter school's authorizer to develop a plan specifying measures the charter school will take to eliminate the under enrollment of special education students and shall publish that plan on the charter school's website. The charter school authorizer shall provide technical assistance to assist with compliance, monitoring compliance and taking appropriate enforcement actions pursuant to this paragraph.
F. The state board for charter schools may:
1. Contract.
2. Sue and be sued.
3. Use the services of the auditor general.
4. Subject to title 41, chapter 4, article 4 and legislative appropriation, employ staff.
G. The state board for charter schools may accept gifts or grants of monies or real or personal property from public and private organizations, if the purpose of the gift or grant specified by the donor is approved by the board and is within the scope of the board's powers and duties. The board shall establish and administer a gift and grant fund for the deposit of monies received pursuant to this subsection.
Sec. 2. Section 15-184, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
15-184. Charter schools; admissions requirements
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 returning to the charter school in the second or any subsequent year of its operation and to siblings of pupils 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 who qualify for special education instruction.
1. 2. Are children, grandchildren or legal wards of any of the following:
(a) Employees of the school.
(b) Employees of the charter holder.
(c) Members of the governing body of the school.
(d) Directors, officers, partners or board members of the charter holder.
2. 3. 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.
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 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 shall admit pupils who reside in the attendance area of a school or who reside in a school district that is under a court order of desegregation or that is a party to an agreement with the United States department of education office for civil rights directed toward remediating alleged or proven racial discrimination unless notice is received from the resident school that the admission would violate the court order or agreement. If a charter school admits a pupil after notice is received that the admission would constitute such a violation, the charter school is not allowed to include in its student count the pupils wrongfully admitted.
J. 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.
