Assigned to ED AS PASSED BY COW
ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, First Regular Session
AMENDED
FACT SHEET FOR H.B. 2060
charter schools; financial requirements; revisions
(NOW: public schools; requirements; revisions)
Purpose
Modifies requirements for school districts, schools operated by a school district (district
schools) and charter schools relating to literacy assessments and training, posting statutorily-required
information, including the statutory parental rights handbook and school records.
Background
The State Board of Education (SBE) must provide for universal screening of students in
preschool programs, kindergarten and grades one through three (K-3) to identify reading
deficiencies. Beginning in school year 2022-2023, and if sufficient monies are appropriate, the
SBE must adopt a statewide kindergarten entry evaluation tool (KEA tool) to administer to
kindergarten pupils within the first 45 calendar days of the school year or a student's enrollment
(A.R.S. § 15-701). In 2022, the SBE approved a KEA tool, which is currently paused by the
Arizona Department of Education for revision of implementation and training (ADE).
School districts and charter schools must ensure that at least one K-3 teacher in each school
receives training related to dyslexia. The SBE must develop dyslexia training opportunities that
include knowledge and practice standards and enable teachers to recognize dyslexia and
implement structured literacy instruction to meet the needs of students with dyslexia. Teachers and
administrators may count, as continuing education credits, training regarding students with reading
impairments, including dyslexia (A.R.S. §§ 15-211 and 15-219).
Statutes governing school districts, district schools and charter schools include various
requirements for posting policies and information on their websites, some of which specify that
the information must be posted prominently or on the website homepage (A.R.S. Title 15). ADE
must post a statutory handbook of parental rights on its website that consists of the statutory
Parents' Bill of Rights and statutes relating to: 1) parents' rights regarding mask mandates,
learning materials and activities and surveys soliciting certain personal information; 2) students'
rights at public educational institutions; and 3) school district school councils, parental
involvement policies and approval of courses of study, textbooks and supplemental materials
(A.R.S. § 15-249.16).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund (state GF) associated with
this legislation.
FACT SHEET – Amended
H.B. 2060
Page 2
Provisions
K-3 Literacy
1. Allows, rather than requires, school districts and charter schools to administer the SBE-adopted
KEA tool.
2. Directs each school district governing board (governing board) and charter school governing
body (governing body) to select appropriate kindergarten entry evaluation methods or
assessments, or both, to identify kindergarten pupils with reading deficiencies and monitor
student progress.
3. Allows a school district and charter school to fulfill the dyslexia training requirement by
ensuring that at least one literacy coach or literacy specialist in each school has received the
dyslexia training.
4. Adds literacy coaches and literacy specialists to the individuals who SBE rules must allow to
count, as continuing education credits, training regarding students with reading impairments,
including dyslexia.
5. Removes, from the requirement that school districts and charter schools must identify each
pupil at risk of reading below grade level in kindergarten and grades one through three, that
identification must be based on local or statewide assessments.
6. Removes the specification that the K-3 motivational assessment is defined by the SBE.
Posting Requirements
7. Allows a school district, district school or a charter school to:
a) satisfy any statutory requirement to post, prominently display, make accessible or
otherwise include specified information on its website by making a link to the information
available on its homepage; and
b) consolidate, on a single webpage, the information that is statutorily-required to be posted,
prominently displayed, made accessible or otherwise included on its website and post a
link to the webpage on their homepage.
8. Specifies that information statutorily-required to be included on a school district's, district
school's or charter school's website is not required to be posted on its home page.
9. Bifurcates the requirement that ADE must develop a statutory handbook of parental rights into
requirements that ADE must develop a statutory handbook of parental rights for parents of
students in school districts (district parental rights handbook) and develop a separate handbook
of parental rights for parents of students in charter schools (charter school parental rights
handbook).
10. Requires the charter school handbook of parental rights to include the text of the statutory
Parents' Bill of Rights and of statutes relating to:
a) parents' rights regarding mask mandates;
b) the rights of students at public educational institutions; FACT SHEET – Amended
H.B. 2060
Page 3
c) the rights of parents of a student in a public educational institution regarding learning
materials and activities; and
d) parental consent for surveys soliciting personal information on specified topics.
11. Specifies that the district handbook of parental rights consists of the statutes prescribed for the
current parental rights handbook.
12. Removes, from the requirement that each school district and charter school must post a link to
the statutory handbook of parental rights on its website, the specification that the link must be
posted prominently.
School Records
13. Requires a governing board or charter school to collect and maintain educational and teaching
background and experience in a particular academic content subject area for the following,
rather than keep the information in the personnel file:
a) each current and former district teacher; or
b) each current charter school teacher.
14. Removes the requirement that a school district or charter school must inform parents and
guardians of the availability of the background and experience information.
15. Allows a school district or charter school to post teacher background and experience
information on their website as an alternative to making the information available for
inspection on request of parents and guardians of enrolled pupils.
16. Increases, from 5 to 10, the number of school days after enrolling a transfer pupil from a private
school or other school district within which a school must request from the pupil's previous
school a certified copy of the pupil's record.
17. Removes the requirement that the school requesting a copy of the transfer pupil's record must
exercise due diligence in obtaining the copy.
Miscellaneous
18. Removes the requirement that the prescribed budget format for school districts must include a
statement identifying the number of full-time equivalent certified employees.
19. Redirects, from the Kirkland School District to the Skull Valley School District, the $300,000
FY 2024 appropriation from the state GF to the Arizona Department of Administration
(ADOA) included in the FY 2024 General Appropriations Act.
20. Makes technical and conforming changes.
21. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
FACT SHEET – Amended
H.B. 2060
Page 4
Amendments Adopted by Committee
1. Allows a governing board or governing body to select KEA evaluation methods or assessments
to administer, rather than requiring administration of the SBE-adopted KEA.
2. Requires a governing board or governing body to collect and maintain teacher background and
experience information rather than keep the information in each personnel file.
3. Removes the requirement that a school district or charter school must inform parents and
guardians that the information is available and allows the information to be posted on the
school district or charter school website.
4. Removes the requirement that the prescribed budget format for school districts must include a
statement identifying the number of full-time equivalent certified employees.
5. Specifies that a school district or charter school that consolidates statutorily-required
information on a single webpage must post a link to the webpage on its homepage.
6. Removes, from statutes that must be included in the charter school statutory handbook of
parental rights, the statute governing school district school councils.
7. Makes technical and conforming changes.
Amendments Adopted by Committee of the Whole
• Redirects, from the Kirkland School District to the Skull Valley School District, the $300,000
FY 2024 appropriation from the state GF to ADOA included in the FY 2024 General
Appropriations Act.
House Action Senate Action
ED 2/14/23 DPA/SE 10-0-0-0 ED 3/8/23 DPA 7-0-0
3
rd
Read 2/22/23 59-0-1
Prepared by Senate Research
June 12, 2023
LB/MH/slp