Assigned to ED FOR COMMITTEE
ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, Second Regular Session
FACT SHEET FOR S.B. 1353
ESA program; ADE; funding estimates
Purpose
Requires the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) to include an updated estimate of
the amount required to fund empowerment scholarship accounts (ESAs) for the following fiscal
year in ADE's budget request.
Background
A qualified student with an ESA may use ESA monies for permissible expenses, including:
1) qualifying tuition or fees; 2) textbooks, curricula and supplementary materials; and 3) outlined
goods and services. Statute prescribes specified categories of qualified students who are eligible
for an ESA. In 2022, the Legislature expanded eligibility to include a universal category for any
Arizona resident who: 1) is eligible to enroll in an Arizona public school; and 2) does not otherwise
qualify for an ESA account. ESAs are funded at 90 percent of the Base Support Level and charter
additional assistance that a student would have been allocated if the student were attending a
charter school (A.R.S. §§ 15-2401; 15-2401.01; and 15-2402).
ADE must, by May 30 of each year, annually furnish to the Joint Legislative Budget
Committee an estimate of the amount required to fund ESAs for the following fiscal year. ADE
must include the amount estimated to be transferred to an ESA for each qualified student in ADE's
budget request for the following fiscal year (A.R.S. § 15-2403).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this
legislation.
Provisions
1. Adds, to ADE's budget request for the following fiscal year, a requirement to include an
updated estimate of the amount required to fund ESA accounts for the following fiscal year.
2. Makes conforming changes.
3. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Prepared by Senate Research
February 12, 2024
MH/slp