Bill Text: AZ HB2526 | 2011 | Fiftieth Legislature 1st Regular | Introduced
Bill Title: School tuition organizations; qualifying enrollment
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-01-25 - Referred to House ED Committee [HB2526 Detail]
Download: Arizona-2011-HB2526-Introduced.html
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REFERENCE TITLE: school tuition organizations; qualifying enrollment |
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State of Arizona House of Representatives Fiftieth Legislature First Regular Session 2011
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HB 2526 |
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Introduced by Representative Pancrazi
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AN ACT
Amending sections 43-1504 and 43-1505, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to school tuition organizations for corporate contributions.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 43-1504, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
43-1504. Special provisions; corporate donations for low-income scholarships; rules
A. A school tuition organization that receives contributions from a corporation for the purposes of section 20‑224.06 or 43‑1183 must use at least ninety per cent of those contributions to provide educational scholarships or tuition grants only to children whose family income does not exceed one hundred eighty-five per cent of the income limit required to qualify a child for reduced price lunches under the national school lunch and child nutrition acts (42 United States Code sections 1751 through 1785) and who either:
1. Attended a governmental primary or secondary school as a full-time student as defined in section 15-901 for at least the first one hundred days of the prior fiscal year and transferred from a governmental primary or secondary school to a qualified school.
2. Enroll in a qualified school in a kindergarten program.
3. Received an educational scholarship or tuition grant under paragraph 1 or 2 if the children continue to attend a qualified school in a subsequent year. A student who is promoted from the highest grade of a qualified school and immediately enrolls in another qualified school offering instruction in the next grade is considered to be continuously enrolled for the purposes of this paragraph.
B. A child is eligible to receive an educational scholarship or tuition grant under subsection A of this section if the child meets the criteria to receive a reduced price lunch but does not actually claim that benefit.
C. In 2006, a school tuition organization shall not issue an educational scholarship or a tuition grant for the purposes of section 20‑224.06 or 43‑1183 in an amount that exceeds four thousand two hundred dollars for students in a kindergarten program or grades one through eight or five thousand five hundred dollars for students in grades nine through twelve. In each year after 2006, the limitation amount for a scholarship or a grant under this subsection shall be increased by one hundred dollars.
D. A school tuition organization shall require that student beneficiaries use the educational scholarships or tuition grants on a full‑time basis. If a child leaves the school before completing an entire school year, the school shall refund a prorated amount of the educational scholarship or tuition grant to the school tuition organization that issued the scholarship or grant. The school tuition organization shall allocate any refunds it receives under this subsection for educational scholarships or tuition grants in the following year.
E. Students who receive an educational scholarship or tuition grant under this section shall be allowed to attend any qualified school of their parents' choice.
F. The department of revenue, with the cooperation of the department of insurance, shall adopt rules and publish and prescribe forms and procedures necessary for the administration of this section.
Sec. 2. Section 43-1505, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
43-1505. Special provisions; corporate donations for displaced students and students with disabilities; definition
A. A school tuition organization that receives contributions for the purposes of section 28‑224.07 20‑224.07 or 43‑1184 must use at least ninety per cent of those contributions to provide educational scholarships or tuition grants to qualified students who either:
1. Received a grant or scholarship under title 15, chapter 8, article 1.2 or 8 in order to attend a qualified school during the 2008‑2009 academic year.
2. Attended a governmental primary or secondary school as a full-time student as defined in section 15‑901 for at least the first one hundred days of the prior fiscal year and transferred from a governmental primary or secondary school to a qualified school.
3. Qualified for an educational scholarship or tuition grant under paragraph 1 or 2 of this subsection if the qualified student continues to attend a qualified school in a subsequent year. A student who is promoted from the highest grade of a qualified school and immediately enrolls in another qualified school offering instruction in the next grade is considered to be continuously enrolled for the purposes of this paragraph.
B. The amount of an educational scholarship or a tuition grant that is issued by a school tuition organization under this section shall not exceed the cost of tuition for the student to attend the qualified school or ninety per cent of the amount of state aid that otherwise would be computed for the student as provided in title 15, chapter 9, article 5, whichever is less. On request from a school tuition organization, the department of education shall provide to the school tuition organization in a timely manner the amount computed for the student under this subsection that represents the ninety per cent limitation prescribed in this subsection.
C. A school tuition organization shall require that student beneficiaries use the educational scholarships or tuition grants on a full‑time basis. If a child leaves the school before completing an entire school year, the school shall refund a prorated amount of the educational scholarship or tuition grant to the school tuition organization that issued the scholarship or grant. The school tuition organization shall allocate any refunds it receives under this subsection for educational scholarships or tuition grants in the following year.
D. Qualified students who receive an educational scholarship or tuition grant under this section shall be allowed to attend any qualified school of their custodians' choice.
E. For the purposes of this section, "qualified student" means a student who has been either:
1. Placed in foster care pursuant to title 8, chapter 5 at any time before the student graduates from high school or obtains a general equivalency diploma.
2. Identified as having a disability under section 504 of the rehabilitation act (29 United States Code section 794) or identified by a school district as a child with a disability as defined in section 15‑761 or a child with a disability who is eligible to receive services from a school district under section 15‑763.
