A major mission of the Arizona People’s Lobbyist group is to pay attention to what happens with a selected number of legislative bills at the state capitol. We watch, issue alerts about upcoming activity, encourage citizens to participate in the process, and report on the results. We are now at the final stage, which is reporting on the results.
It should be pointed out that this year our state legislators introduced 1,827 bills, which is probably either a record or very close to being a record. A significant portion of those bills were either feel-good bills, or making-a-statement bills, never intended to be passed.
We also had our share of housekeeping bills. We at the AZ People’s Lobbyist group, tracked 220 of the more important and/or controversial bills. The way we chose what bills to track was via input from activists and the general public. We are not single-issue advocates. The bills that we tracked were the kinds of bills important enough to be the subject of discussions around the office water cooler.
| BILL # AND SHORT TITLE (*) | VOTE | SPONSOR AND/OR WHAT THE BILL DOES |
RESULTS (*) P = PASSED F = FAILED |
FINAL DISPOSITION | COMMENTS |
| HB2001 – (NOW: credit for donation) | House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading |
COBB – Creates a corporate tax credit for the donation of real property to a school district or charter school. | P-59-1-0 P-27-3-0 |
One of 22 Vetoed by Governor to thumb his nose at the Legislature | Signed later by Governor as SB1830. Same language, different bill number |
| HB2017 – appropriation; STEM; learning; workforce development | House 3rd Reading | UDALL – Appropriates the sum of $3,000,000 from the state General Fund (GF) for the fiscal year (FY) 2022 to the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) to administer a grant program to cultivate science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) for both learning and workforce development. Exempt from the provisions of ARS 35-190. | P-50-10-0 | Held in Senate | Two D’s voted NO: Friese, Powers-Hanley Eight R’s voted NO: Burges, Fillmore, Finchem, Grantham, Hoffman, Parker, Payne, RobertsShould not be exempt from the provisions of ARS 35-190. This bill gives the appearance of being a permanent, unsupervised, and unaccountable slush fund for school districts. The $3 million initial appropriation is in addition to other funding. |
| HB2018 – schools; audits; financial records; budgets | House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading |
UDALL- Revises the Uniform System of Financial Records (USFR) for school districts and charter schools including reporting requirements, budget information and financial and compliance audits. | P-58-0-2
P-29-0-1 |
Signed by Governor | |
| HB2020 – schools; child care; reduced fees | House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading |
UDALL – States that a public school may discount the amount a public-school employee pays for child care services provided or contracted by a public school. |
P-41-17-2 P-28-1-0 |
Signed by Governor | House: All NO votes came from concerned Republicans
Senate: Only Petersen voted NO Bad policy. Everyone should pay the same for the same service |
| HB2021 – college course credit; dual enrollment | House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading |
UDALL – Currently only juniors and seniors are eligible. This bill adds freshmen and sophomores | P-58-0-2
P-28-0-2 |
Signed by Governor | |
| HB2022 – schools; resources; services; consolidation grants | House 3rd Reading | UDALL – Directs the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) to conduct a five-year resource and service consolidation grant program (Grant Program). Appropriates $10,000,000 from the state General Fund (GF) in FY 2022 for the Grant Program. Exempt from the provisions of ARS 35-190.
That means that unexpended moneys are retained without affecting subsequent funding |
P-35-25-0 | Held in Senate |
HOUSE: All 25 NO votes came from Republicans 6 R’s voted YES: John, Osborne, Pratt, Udall, Bowers, Dunn
Should not be exempt from the provisions of ARS 35-190 – If consolidation saves money, why is a grant needed? |
| HB2023 – schools; employees; employment; discipline | House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading |
UDALL – Subjects a noncertificated person at a school district or charter school to disciplinary action for immoral or unprofessional conduct. Prohibits a school district or charter school from hiring a noncertificated person who is convicted of specified crimes. (Same as SB10610 | P-58-0-2
P-29-0-1 |
Signed by Governor | |
| HB2024 – CTEDs; internships; funding | House 3rd Reading | UDALL – Includes students enrolled in any internship course, that is part of a career technical education district (CTED) program, in a CTED’s student count. | P-58-0-2 | Held in Senate | |
| HB2032 – public schools; innovation plans | House Education | UDALL – Establishes a process for a public school to become a school of innovation. | HELD | Held in House ED committee | There is enough innovation coming from charter and public schools. This is a great open ended bureaucratic playground. This bill does not address how much it will cost to implement or the source of funding |
| HB2035 – parental rights; sex education instruction
|
House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading
House Final Reading
|
GRIFFIN – As amended, contains language similar to that of vetoed bill SB1456, dealing with parents’ rights to control their children’s participation in sex education |
P-55-4-1
P-16-13-1
P-32-24-5
|
Signed by Governor | |
| HB2055 – career, technical education; projects fund | House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading |
KAISER – Sale of products produced by technical education projects are used to fund a fund to cover expenses | P-57-2-1
P-30-0-0 |
Signed by Governor | |
| HB2063 – schools; student promotions | House 3rd Reading | FILLMORE – Requires a teacher to retain a pupil in a kindergarten program or the 1st-4th grades if the pupil does not meet the prescribed criteria for promotion | P-31-29-0 | Held in Senate | This is a feel-good bill. It is good because it prohibits teachers from promoting students to the next grade if they do not know the material. It is bad because it has so many exclusions that it is very close to being worthless. |
| HB2135 – education board; rules; learning outcomes | House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading
House Final Reading |
UDALL – Modifies the rules the State Board of Education (SBE) must adopt when defining competency-based educational pathways for college and career readiness. Requires SBE to conduct a review regarding student promotion and credit prior to adopting these rules. | P-56-3-1
P-20-8-2
P-55-5-0 |
Signed by Governor | |
| HB2151 – experienced teacher retention; pilot program |
House Education
House Appropriations
|
FRIESE – Encourages teachers to remain teachers by providing discounts on university tuition. However, it makes the teachers’ spouses and dependents also eligible. Appropriates initially $2 million, but no limit in subsequent years. Appropriated moneys are in addition to any other education appropriations. It creates a bureaucracy to administer the program.
|
P-7-3-0
P-10-3-0 |
Died in the House | Republicans that joined Democrats and voted for this bill: In Education, John and Udall.
In Appropriations, Nguyen, Udall, Kavanagh, Cobb
Opponents: Roberts, Pingerelli, Hoffman, Kaiser, Nutt
Very bad bill. A gift to universities. Why make spouses and all dependents eligible? |
| HB2179 – (NOW: new school facilities; base costs) | House 3rd Reading | UDALL – Adds to the circumstances in which the School Facilities Board (SFB) may modify the base costs provided in the New School Facilities (NSF) Fund formula. Requires the Joint Committee on Capital Review (JCCR) to review new school construction projects. | P-51-8-1 | Held in Senate | |
| HB2268 – schools; total compensation statements | House 3rd Reading
Sente 3rd Reading |
GRANTHAM – Directs a charter school governing body (governing body) and a school district governing board (governing board) to provide each employee with a total compensation statement as outlined. | P-59-0-0
P-30-0-0 |
Signed by Governor | |
| HB2280 – schools; expenditure limit; overrides | ** | LIEBERMAN – Would have removed some of the restrictions on expenditure limits and overrides | ** | Killed in House Committee | |
| HB2282 – instruction; Holocaust; antisemitism | House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading
House Final Reading |
LIEBERMAN – Requires the State Board of Education (SBE) to mandate that instruction on the Holocaust and its root causes include instruction on antisemitism | P-55-2-3
P-16-14-0
** |
Held in the House | |
| HB2458 – schools; universities; consular identification cards.. | House Education | COOK: CHAVEZ – A school district or charter school shall accept a consular identification card that complies with section 41-5001 to show verifiable documentation of residency in this state pursuant to this paragraph.
Another attempt at legitimizing unlawful presence. The consular ID card does nothing to establish lawful presence Same as SB1420 |
P-9-0-0 | Abandoned in favor of mirror bill in Senate, SB1420 | |
| HB2705 – schools; dress codes; graduation ceremonies | Senate 3rd Reading
House 3rd Reading |
TELLER – Prohibits a school from establishing a dress code policy that prevents students from wearing traditional tribal regalia or objects of cultural significance at a graduation ceremony. Contains an emergency clause, meaning that:
This act is an emergency measure that is necessary to preserve the public peace, health or safety and is operative immediately as provided by law. |
P-24-6-0
P-57-2-1 |
Signed by Governor |
In Senate all 6 NO votes came from R’s: Borrelli, Gowan, Leach, Livingston, Rogers, Ugenti-Rita In House 2 NO votes came from R’s Hoffman and Parker This is a racist bill. It provides a benefit to an ethnic group that is not provided to the rest of ethnic groups. Why is this act an emergency measure that is “necessary to preserve the public peace, health or safety”? Why would absence of this bill threaten public peace, health or safety? |
| HB2840 – misconduct involving weapons; school grounds | House 3rd Reading | PARKER – States a person does not commit misconduct involving weapons by knowingly possessing a deadly weapon on school grounds if the firearm, whether loaded or unloaded, is carried within a means of transportation under the control of an adult and if the adult leaves the vehicle, that the vehicle remains locked and the firearm is not visible | P-31-28-1 | Held in Senate | |
| HB2841 – attorney general; initiation of action | House Third Reading | PARKER – Allows the Department of Law to initiate, prosecute and defend any action in court to uphold and ensure compliance with the Arizona Constitution relating to admission of students of both sexes to state educational institutions and making instruction as nearly free as possible | F-30-29-1 | Failed in House 3rd Reading vote | All D’s voted NO
All but one R’s voted YES Udall (R) singlehandedly killed this bill by voting NV |
| HB2862 – schools; instructional time models | House 3rd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading House Final Reading |
UDALL – Allows a school district or charter school (school) to adopt an instructional time model that permits the school to deliver annual required instructional time or hours through specified modes.
|
P-46-14-0
P-24-6-0 P-52-8-0 |
Signed by Governor | In the House. 2 R’s voted NO: Fillmore and Kaiser
In the Senate, NO’s were mixed 3 R’s 3 D’s
House Final: 8 R’s voted NO: Burges, Chaplik, Fillmore, Grantham, Griffin, Hoffmn, Nutt, Parker
The provisions of this bill are not good for students or taxpayers. |
| HCR2004 – schools; consolidation; unification | ** | FILLMORE – All schools must consolidate and use the money saved to help fund classroom expenses | ** | Killed by Udall in the House Education Committee | |
| HCR2005 – English language education; requirements. | House 3rd Reading | FILLMORE – Aimed at overturning Prop 303 of 2000. Creates a dual “immersion” for both English speaking and English learning.. This has never worked. English learners must have an English only true immersion program | P-58-1-1 | Abandoned in favor of Senate version
SB1020 |
Bad for students, good for bureaucrats
Extremely damaging to non-English speaking students that are trying to learn English |
| HCR2025 – school districts; expenditure limit; authorization. | House Education | UDALL – Authorizes the expenditure of local revenues by school districts in excess of the aggregate expenditure limitation in FY 2021 | P-8-1-0 | Died in the House | This bill is an insult to taxpayers. It calls for expenditures exceeding the constitutional limit at a time when students are receiving substantially less education under the guise of protection against COVID |
| HCR2030 – teachers; ethics standards; rules | ** | FINCHEM – Contains a list of several rules to be followed by teachers and other school employees. If passed, it would have taken that set of rules to the people for approval | ** | Killed by Udall in the House Education Committee | |
| SB1058 – schools; learning materials; activities | Senate Third Reading | BARTO – Requires district and charter schools to post a list of procedures used to review and approve learning materials and procedures by which a parent can review learning materials in advance. | P-16-14-0 | Killed by Udall in House Ed Committee | Committee chairman Udall refused to bring it up for a hearing. |
| SB1061 – schools; employees; employment; discipline. | ** | BOYER | ** | Abandoned in favor of House version HB2023 | |
| SB1174 – appropriation; STEM internships | Senate 3rd Reading | BOWIE – Appropriates
$2 million for a public-private partnership |
P-24-5-1 | Killed in House Education Committee
(HELD) |
This is a bad bill. STEM instruction should be part of the education we are paying for. This is another one of those public/private partnerships in which the private company gets to spend our tax money
5 R’s Voted NO: Borrelli, Petersen, Rogers, Townsend, Ugenti-Rita |
| SB1179 – CTEDs; fourth-year funding. | Senate 3rd Reading | MESNARD – Allows a career technical education district (CTED) to include students who are in the 9th grade, in the school year immediately following graduation or enrolled in an internship course in student count or average daily membership (ADM) | P-30-0-0 | Held in the House | |
| SB1188 – results-based funding; repeal; special education | ** | ENGEL – Repeals
ARS 15-249.08, Dealing with results-based funding |
** | Killed in the Senate Education Committee | |
| SB1246 – school districts; boards; term limits | Senate Education | BOWIE – Limits eligibility to serve on a school district governing board (governing board) to two consecutive terms. | NO ACTION | Killed by Boyer in Senate Education Committee
(Never brought it up) |
|
| SB1273 – STOs; contributions; allowable uses | Senate 3rd Reading | MESNARD – Expands the permissible expenditures of a school tuition organization (STO) educational scholarship or tuition grant to include the cost of school registration and, as applicable, outlined costs relating to extracurricular activities and testing. | P-16-14-0 | Held in House | |
| SB1294 – (NOW: community college; expenditure limitation)
|
Senate 3rd Reading | SHOPE – Increases the prescribed weight for career and technical education (CTE) courses for determining expenditure limitations. Allows community college districts exceeding expenditure limitations to receive state aid in FYs 2021 through 2023. Districts that violate the expenditure limitation are subject to a $100 penalty. | P-21-9-0 | Stopped tracking because of a second strike-all amendment | In the Sente, All 9 NO votes came from R’s
Misleading short title It does not impose expenditure limitations, but removes some of them
The last strike all amendment should be illegal because it deals with a subject not germane to the original subject. |
| SB1302 – CTEDs; average daily membership. | Senate 3rd Reading | SHOPE – Allows students in approved career technical education (CTE) programs to generate an average daily membership (ADM) for instruction received during any hour of the day, during any day of the week at any time between July 1 and June 30 of each fiscal year. Specifies career and technical education districts (CTEDs) can operate for less than 180 days per year. | P-30-0-0 | Killed in the House Education Committee | |
| SB1318 – schools; corporal punishment; prohibition | ** | ALSTON – a teacher, principal or other person employed by a school district or charter school may not subject a pupil to corporal punishment. | ** | Killed in Senate Education Committee | |
| SB1341 – schools; incentive program; dual enrollment | ** | NAVARRETE – Would give an incentive bonus to schools for each successful completion of dual enrollment course | ** | Killed in Senate Education Committee | |
| SB1376 – schools; curriculum; mental health | Senate 3rd Reading
House 3rd Reading |
BOWIE – Directs the State Board of Education (SBE) to require that all health education instruction include mental health instruction. | P-29-1-0
P-40-18-2 |
Signed by Governor | This is a very bad bill, promoting brain washing of students.
Senate: Only one NO vote came from Townsend
House: All 18 NO votes came from conservative Republicans
Undermines the prohibition of Critical Race Theory instruction in HB2898 |
| SB1400 – schools; course equivalents | Senate 3rd Reading | BOYER – Requires school districts and charter schools, beginning in the 2022-2023 school year, to allow students in grades 9 through 12 to receive course credits for participating in a variety of non-classroom activities | P-16-14-0 | Killed in House
Education Committee |
|
| SB1452 – Arizona empowerment scholarships accounts; revisions | Senate 3rd Reading | BOYER – Deems students receiving Title I services or free or reduced-price lunches (FRPLs) eligible for the Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) Program and allows ESA monies to be spent on transportation services. Modifies ESA program funding and expenditure requirements. | P-16-14-0 | Killed in House COW | |
| SB1453 – school districts; aggregate expenditure limitation | Senate 3rd Reading | BOYER – Conditioned on enactment of S.C.R. 1021, modifies the statutory factors the Economic Estimates Commission must use to determine the aggregate expenditure limitation for school districts. | P-29-1-0 | Killed by Strike All amendment
No longer tracking |
This was an important bill until stricken by strike all amendment |
| SB1456 – sex education instruction; parental rights | Senate 3rd Reading
House 3rd Reading |
BARTO – Requires that schools obtain written consent from parents before enrolling student in sex education programs. Requires that school boards conduct transparent hearings before adopting such programs | P-16-14-0
P-31-28-1 |
Vetoed by Governor | |
| SB1532 – impending school operations; civil liability | Senate 3rd Reading
House 3rd Reading
Senate Final Reading |
LIVINSTON – Permits the Attorney General (AG) to bring an action to recover public monies utilized for any activity that prevents the operation of a public school, with outlined exemptions. Restricts a school district, charter school or state agency from requiring discussion about controversial issues that are not essential to the course learning objectives. Directs controversial issues to be presented from diverse and contending perspectives, outlines prohibited concepts and establishes violation procedures. | P-18-12-0
P-31-29-0
F-14-16-0
|
Failed in the Senate Final
Reading |
This bill would have banned the promotion of critical race theory in our public schools. Critical Race Theory is a very racist concept. This bill was defeated in the senate as a result of BOYER (LD20) joining the Democrats to defeat it. |
| SB1572 – schools; early literacy | Senate 3rd Reading
House 3rd Reading
Senate Final Reading |
SHOPE – Requires that all applicants for all certificates for common instruction pass a literacy instruction assessment to show that the applicant is capable of teaching reading. | P-26-4-0
P-31-28-1
P-17-12-1 |
Signed by Governor | |
| SB1620 – charter school omnibus | ** | QUEZADA – Imposes a whole litany of regulations on charter schools | ** | Killed in Senate Education Committee | |
| SB1628 – pupil discipline; schools | ** | QUEZADA – Lots of micro management as to how and when to administer discipline and/or expulsions | ** | Killed in Senate Education Committee | |
| SB1739 – college credit; incentive program; repeal | ** | MARSH – Repeals the current dual enrollment incentive program | ** | Killed in Senate Education Committee | |
| SB1774 – public schools; 2020-2021; 2021-2022; funding | ** | GONZALES – Remote education must be funded at the same rate as classroom education. Bogus student counts for funding purposes. Contains an emergency clause: “This act is an emergency measure that is necessary to preserve the public peace, health or safety and is operative immediately as provided by law.” | ** | Killed in Senate Education Committee | What is it about this bill that makes it “necessary to preserve the public peace, health, or safety”? |
| SCR1020 – English language education; requirements… | Senate 3rd Reading
|
SHOPE – Subject to voter approval, statutorily repeals the requirement that all Arizona public school students be taught in English and the requirement that children who are English language learners (ELLs) be taught using structured English immersion (SEI). Requires each public school to ensure ELLs receive high quality education and programing, and master the English language.
|
P-23-7-0 | Died in House Rules Committee
|
7 R senators opposed this bill: Barto, Gowan, Livingston, Mesnard, Petersen, Townsend, and Ugenti-Rita
This measure is aimed at reversing Prop 203, approved by voters in 2000. It is probably the worst crime that can be perpetrated against a non-English speaking student trying to learn English. Supporters of this bill have no clue as to what it takes to learn a foreign language in a foreign land, or else don’t give a damn about helping English learners. |
| SCR1044 – tuition; postsecondary education | Senate 3rd Reading
House 3rd Reading |
BOWIE; SHOPE; UDALL; Persons without lawful immigration status are eligible for in-state tuition pursuant to subsection b of this section
Repeals ARS 15-1825 Referendum – Statute to be submitted to the voters for approval |
P-17-13-0
P-33-27-0 |
Transmitted to SOS | This is a terrible bill. A native or lawful resident of, say Utah has to pay out of state tuition at AZ universities, but an unlawfully present immigrant gets a discounted rate paid for by AZ taxpayers.
Voted YES in Senate: All D’s + 3 R’s Boyer(LD20), Shope(LD8), Pace(LD25) Voted YES in House: All D’s + 3 R’s: Cook(LD8), John(LD4), Udall(LD25) |