qualified students; statewide assessment; requirements

HB2605 - 572R - I Ver

REFERENCE TITLE:
qualified students; statewide assessment; requirements

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

HB 2605

Introduced by

Representative
Blackman

AN
ACT

amending sections 15-741, 15-743
and 15-2402, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to school assessment and
accountability.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 15-741, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
15-741.

Assessment of pupils; definition

A. The state board of education shall:

1. Adopt rules for the purposes of this article
pursuant to title 41, chapter 6.

2. Adopt and implement a statewide assessment to
measure pupil achievement of the state board-adopted academic standards in
reading, writing and mathematics in at least four grades designated by the
state board.� The state board shall determine the manner of
implementation. The state board may administer assessments of the
academic standards in social studies and science, except that a pupil shall not
be required to meet or exceed the social studies or science standards measured
by the statewide assessment.

3. Ensure that the tests prescribed in this section
are uniform throughout this state.

4. Ensure that the tests prescribed in this section
are able to be scored in an objective manner and are not intended to advocate
any sectarian, partisan or denominational viewpoint.

5. Ensure that the tests prescribed in this article
collect only types of pupil nontest data that are approved by the state board
at a public meeting and published on the website of the state board pursuant to
paragraph 7 of this subsection.

6. Include within its budget all costs pertaining to
the tests prescribed in this article. If sufficient monies are
appropriated, the state board may provide achievement test services to school
districts that request assistance in testing pupils in grades additional to
those required by this section.

7. Survey teachers, principals and superintendents
on achievement-related nontest indicators, including information on
graduation rates by ethnicity and dropout rates by ethnicity for each grade
level.� Before the survey, the state board shall approve at a public meeting
the nontest indicators on which data will be collected and shall post in a
prominent position on the home page of the state board's website a link to the
nontest indicators entitled "What nontest data does the state of Arizona
collect about Arizona pupils?". The linked webpage shall state
the types of data collected, the reasons for the collection of the data and the
entities with which the data is shared. In conducting the survey and
collecting data, the state board shall not violate the provisions of the family
educational rights and privacy act (P.L. 93-380), as amended, or disclose
personally identifiable information.

8. Establish a fair and consistent method and
standard by which test scores from schools in a district may be evaluated
taking into consideration demographic data. The state board shall
establish intervention strategies to assist schools with scores below the
acceptable standard. The state board shall annually review district
and school scores and shall offer assistance to school districts in analyzing
data and implementing intervention strategies. The state board shall
use the adopted test and methods of data evaluation for a period of at least
ten years.

9. Participate in other assessments that provide
national comparisons as needed.

10. Require in the contract for the statewide
assessment pursuant to this section that test scores and assessment data from
the third grade reading portion of the statewide assessment adopted pursuant to
this section be received by local education agencies on or before May 15 of
each academic year and that the scores and assessment data from all other
portions of the statewide assessment adopted pursuant to this section be
received by local education agencies on or before May 25 of each academic
year.� The state board shall impose penalties on the contractor for scores
received after these dates. If the state board alters the statewide
assessment testing window for any reason, the state board may adjust the dates
by which local education agencies are required to receive the scores and
assessment data proportionately.� If the state board adjusts the dates by which
local education agencies are required to receive the scores and assessment
data, the state board may not impose penalties on the contractor unless the
scores and assessment data are received after the adjusted dates.

B. The achievement tests adopted by the state board
as provided in subsection A of this section shall be given at least
annually. Nontest indicator data and other information shall be
collected at the same time as the collection of achievement test data.

C. Local school district governing boards shall:

1. Administer the tests prescribed in subsection A
of this section.

2. Survey teachers, principals and superintendents
on achievement-related nontest indicator data as required by the state
board, including information related to district graduation and dropout rates.�
In conducting the survey and collecting data, the governing board shall not
violate the provisions of the family educational rights and privacy act
(P.L. 93-380), as amended, or disclose personally identifiable
information.

D. The department of education shall
administer the tests prescribed in subsection A of this section to all
qualified students as defined in section 15-2401 or 15-2401.01 who
are educated pursuant to an empowerment scholarship account as defined in
section 15-802.

D.

E.
Any
additional assessments for high school pupils that are adopted by the state
board after November 24, 2009 shall be designed to measure college and career
readiness of pupils.

E.

F.
If
a high school pupil who is enrolled in a school district or charter school
, or who is educated pursuant to an empowerment scholarship account as
defined in section 15-802
,
participates in a
nationally recognized assessment that is both adopted by the state board of
education pursuant to subsection A of this section and administered by a person
other than the school district
,

or

charter school
or department of education
, the pupil or
pupil's parent or guardian may submit the pupil's official score report for the
assessment to the school district
,

or

charter school
or department of education
. On
receipt of an official score report pursuant to this subsection, the school
district
,

or
charter school
or department of education
shall do all of the following:

1. Record the score in the pupil's file.�

2. Report the score to the state board of education
and the department of education.

3. If the pupil or pupil's parent or guardian
submits an official score report pursuant to this subsection to the school
district
,

or
charter school
or department of education
before the date on which the school
or department
administers the tests prescribed in subsection A
of this section, allow the pupil to opt out of participation in the assessment
that is administered by the school district
,

or
charter school
or department of education
.�
If a pupil opts out of an assessment pursuant to this paragraph, the school
district
,

or
charter school
or department of education
shall use the data from the pupil's
official score report for the pupil's achievement test data for the purposes of
this section.� This paragraph does not require a school district or charter
school to allow a pupil to opt out of the collection of nontest indicator data
or other information that is collected about pupils who participate in the
assessment that is administered by the school district or charter school
pursuant to this section.

F.

g.
A
test for penmanship shall not be required pursuant to this article.

G.

h.
If
a local education agency requests a raw data file of assessment data for the
pupils tested at the local education agency, the department of education shall
fulfill the request in a format that is usable for assessment diagnostics
within thirty days after the request.� The local education agency shall follow
all applicable student data privacy laws and may not publicly disclose
individual student achievement results.

H.

i.
A
school district
,

or
charter school
or the department of education
may administer the statewide
assessment in the form of a written test
if

for
any of the following
applies

reasons
:

1. A written test is required pursuant to an
individualized education program or a section 504 plan as defined in section 15-731.

2. To accommodate special circumstances.

3. For religious purposes.

4. On request by a pupil's parent or guardian.

I.

j.
For
the purposes of this section, "nationally recognized" has the same
meaning prescribed in section 15-741.02. �
END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Section 15-743, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
15-743.

Test results; annual reports; five-year cumulative summary;
distribution of scores to schools and parents; testing window

A. The state board of education shall provide annual
reports for
every
each
school
,

and

each
school
district
, the Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts program

and
the

this
state as a
whole. The state board shall annually submit these reports to school
districts, the legislature and the county school superintendents and shall make
them available to the public.� The state board shall publish and distribute the
reports by September 1 and shall
also
provide a cumulative
summary of the reports every five years. The annual reports and
cumulative summary results shall include:

1. Average and range scores on the statewide
assessment adopted pursuant to section 15-741.

2. Standardized test scores by subject area
according to percentiles and stanines for the school, school district, county,
Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts program,
state

and nation.

3. Achievement-related nontest indicator data
collected in the survey of teachers, principals and superintendents as required
by section 15-741, including information related to dropout rates by
ethnicity for each grade level and graduation rates and postsecondary
employment and education by ethnicity. In reporting such data, the
state board shall not violate the provisions of the family educational rights
and privacy act (P.L. 93-380), as amended, or disclose personally
identifiable information.

4. The numbers of pupils who have completed the
academic standards at grades three, eight and twelve.

B. Test results on individual pupils shall not be
made available to the public by name or individually identifiable reference.

C. The state board shall provide a copy of the
results from the tests prescribed in section 15-741, subsection A for
each school district to that school district.� Results may not be released to
the public until ten days after the reports are provided to each school
district.

D. The state board shall provide each school
district
that is
participating in the testing program
with a copy of each pupil's standardized norm-referenced test scores in
reading, language arts and mathematics, and the associated grade equivalents,
percentiles and stanines for the school, school district, county,
Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts program,
state and
nation, a report of pupil progress on an ongoing and annual basis, showing the
trends in gain or loss in pupil achievement over time in reading, language arts
and mathematics for all years in which pupils are enrolled in the school
district for an entire school year and for which this information is available
and a report of the pupil progress for pupils not enrolled in a district for an
entire school year. The state board shall
also

provide each school district with each pupil's statewide assessment scores and
the statewide assessment scores for the school, school district, county
, Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts program
and state.

E. The school district shall provide a parent or
guardian of each pupil participating in the standardized norm-referenced
testing part of the program with a copy of the pupil's scores in reading,
language arts and mathematics, and the percentiles and stanines. The
school district shall provide a parent or guardian of each pupil with a copy of
the pupil's scores on the statewide assessment and the associated scores for
the school, school district, county
, Arizona empowerment
scholarship accounts program
and state. The school district
shall make available to the public through the reports those scores for each
school in the school district and for the school district, county,
Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts program,
state and
nation.

F.
Any
the
department of education or the state board of education shall establish and
execute a
testing window
established and executed by the
department of education or the state board for the administration of

to administer
the statewide assessment adopted pursuant to
section 15-741
may
that is
not
be longer than four consecutive school weeks and shall ensure that local
education agencies receive test scores and assessment data from the third grade
reading portion of the statewide assessment on or before May 15 of each
academic year and that the scores and assessment data from all other portions
of the statewide assessment adopted pursuant to section 15-741 are
received by local education agencies on or before May 25 of each academic
year. The department of education or the state board may not
prohibit the superintendent or the staff of a local education agency from
sharing statewide assessment data with the local education agency's district
governing board or governing body or otherwise impede the sharing of statewide
assessment data.

G. Notwithstanding subsection F of this section and
sections 15-741 and 15-742, the department of education, subject to
review and approval by the state board, may adjust the testing window for the
statewide assessment adopted pursuant to section 15-741 in academic years
that the state board is revising current proficiency levels or is establishing
new proficiency levels for the statewide assessment adopted pursuant to section
15-741.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 3. Section 15-2402, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
15-2402.

Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts; funds

A. Arizona
empowerment scholarship accounts are established to provide options for the
education of students in this state.

B. To enroll a qualified student for an Arizona
empowerment scholarship account, the parent of the qualified student must sign
an agreement to do all of the following:

1. Use a portion of the Arizona empowerment
scholarship account monies allocated annually to provide an education for the
qualified student in at least the subjects of reading, grammar, mathematics,
social studies and science, unless the Arizona empowerment scholarship account
is allocated monies according to a transfer schedule other than quarterly
transfers pursuant to section 15-2403, subsection G.

2. Not enroll the qualified student in a school
district or charter school and release the school district from all obligations
to educate the qualified student.� This paragraph does not:

(a) Relieve the school district or charter school
that the qualified student previously attended from the obligation to conduct
an evaluation pursuant to section 15-766.

(b) Require the qualified student to withdraw from
a
any
school district or charter
school before enrolling for an Arizona empowerment scholarship account if the
qualified student withdraws from the school district or charter school before
receiving any monies in the qualified student's Arizona empowerment scholarship
account.

(c) Prevent the qualified student from applying in
advance for an Arizona empowerment scholarship account to be funded beginning
the following school year, subject to section 15-2403, subsection H.

3. Not accept a scholarship from a school tuition
organization pursuant to title 43 concurrently with an Arizona empowerment
scholarship account for the qualified student in the same year a parent signs
the agreement pursuant to this section.

4. Use monies deposited in the qualified student's
Arizona empowerment scholarship account only for the following expenses of the
qualified student:

(a) Tuition or fees at a qualified school that
requires all teaching staff and
school
personnel who have
unsupervised contact with students to be fingerprinted.

(b) Textbooks required by a qualified school.

(c) If the qualified student meets any of the
criteria specified in section 15-2401, paragraph 7, subdivision (a), item
(i), (ii) or (iii) as determined by a school district or by an independent
third party pursuant to section 15-2403, subsection J, the qualified
student may use the following additional services:

(i) Educational therapies from a licensed or
accredited practitioner or provider, including and up to any amount not covered
by insurance if the expense is partially paid by a health insurance policy for
the qualified student.

(ii) A licensed or accredited paraprofessional or
educational aide.

(iii) Tuition for vocational and life skills
education approved by the department.

(iv) Associated goods and services that include
educational and psychological evaluations, assistive technology rentals and
braille translation goods and services approved by the department.

(d) Tutoring or teaching services provided by an
individual who is not subject to disciplinary action by the state board of
education for immoral or unprofessional conduct pursuant to section 15-505
or 15-534.04 or a facility that is accredited by a state, regional or
national accrediting organization. The department shall ensure
that
any individual who provides tutoring or teaching services
to one or more qualified students pursuant to this subdivision is not subject
to disciplinary action by the state board of education.� The department shall
also remove any individual who is subject to disciplinary action by the state
board of education from all platforms that the department provides to parents
and qualified students for the purchase of goods or educational services using
account monies.

(e) Curricula and supplementary materials.

(f) Tuition or fees for a nonpublic online learning
program.

(g) Fees for a nationally standardized norm-referenced
achievement test, an advanced placement examination or any exams related to
college or university admission.

(h) Tuition or fees at an eligible postsecondary
institution.

(i) Textbooks required by an eligible postsecondary
institution.

(j) Fees to manage the Arizona empowerment
scholarship account.

(k) Services provided by a public school, including
individual classes and extracurricular programs.

(l) Insurance or surety bond payments.

(m) Uniforms purchased from or through a qualified
school.

(n) If the qualified student meets the criteria
specified in section 15-2401, paragraph 7, subdivision (a), item (i),
(ii) or (iii) and if the qualified student is in the second year prior to the
final year of a contract executed pursuant to this article, costs associated
with an annual education plan conducted by an independent evaluation
team. The department shall prescribe minimum qualifications for
independent evaluation teams pursuant to this subdivision and factors that
teams must use to determine whether the qualified student shall be eligible to
continue to receive monies pursuant to this article through the school year in
which the qualified student reaches twenty-two years of
age. An independent evaluation team that provides an annual
education plan pursuant to this subdivision shall submit a written report that
summarizes the results of the evaluation to the parent of the qualified student
and to the department on or before July 31. The written report
submitted by the independent evaluation team is valid for one
year. If the department determines that the qualified student meets
the eligibility criteria prescribed in the annual education plan, the qualified
student is eligible to continue to receive monies pursuant to this article until
the qualified student reaches twenty-two years of age, subject to annual
review. A parent may appeal the department's decision pursuant to
title 41, chapter 6, article 10. As an addendum to a qualified
student's final-year contract, the department shall provide the following
written information to the parent of the qualified student:

(i) That the qualified student will not be eligible
to continue to receive monies pursuant to this article unless the results of an
annual education plan conducted pursuant to this subdivision demonstrate that
the qualified student meets the eligibility criteria prescribed in the annual
education plan.

(ii) That the parent is entitled to obtain an annual
education plan pursuant to this subdivision to determine whether the qualified
student meets the eligibility criteria prescribed in the annual education plan.

(iii) A list of independent evaluation teams that
meet the minimum qualifications prescribed by the department pursuant to this
subdivision.

(o) Public transportation services in this state,
including a commuter pass for the qualified student, or transportation network
services as defined in section 28-9551 between the qualified student's
residence and a qualified school in which the qualified student is enrolled.

(p) Computer hardware and technological devices
primarily used for an educational purpose. For the purposes of this
subdivision, "computer hardware and technological devices":

(i) Includes calculators, personal computers,
laptops, tablet devices, microscopes, telescopes and printers.

(ii) Does not include entertainment and other
primarily noneducational devices, including televisions, telephones, video game
consoles and accessories, and home theatre and audio equipment.

5. Not file an affidavit of intent to homeschool
pursuant to section 15-802, subsection B, paragraph 2 or 3.

6. Not use monies deposited in the qualified
student's account for any of the following:

(a) Computer hardware or other technological
devices, except as otherwise allowed under paragraph 4, subdivision (c) or (p)
of this subsection.

(b) Transportation of the pupil, except for
transportation services described in paragraph 4, subdivision (o) of this
subsection.

7. Ensure that the qualified student
participates in the statewide assessment that is administered by the department
of education pursuant to section 15-741 if the qualified student does not
meet the criteria specified in section 15-2401, paragraph 7, subdivision
(
a
), item (
i
), (
ii
) or (
iii
).� A qualified student who meets the
criteria specified in section 15-2401, paragraph 7, subdivision (
a
), item (
i
), (
ii
) or (
iii
) may participate in the statewide assessment if all of the following
conditions are met:

(
a
) The
qualified student is learning at a level appropriate for the qualified
student's grade level in a specific academic area.

(
b
) The
qualified student's parent agrees that A passing score on the statewide
assessment is required in the specific academic area.

(
c
) The
qualified student's parent notifies the department, in a form and manner
prescribed by the department, of any necessary testing accommodations.

C. In exchange for the parent's agreement pursuant
to subsection B of this section, the department shall transfer from the monies
that would otherwise be allocated to a recipient's prior school district, or if
the child is currently eligible to attend a preschool program for children with
disabilities, a kindergarten program or any of grades one through twelve, the
monies that the department determines would otherwise be allocated to a
recipient's expected school district of attendance, to the treasurer for
deposit into an Arizona empowerment scholarship account an amount that is
equivalent to ninety percent of the sum of the base support level and
additional assistance prescribed in sections 15-185 and 15-943 for
that particular student if that student were attending a charter school.

D. The department of education empowerment
scholarship account fund is established consisting of monies appropriated by
the legislature. The department shall administer the
fund. Monies in the fund are subject to legislative
appropriation. Monies in the fund shall be used for the department's
costs in administering Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts under this
chapter. Monies in the fund are exempt from the provisions of
section 35-190 relating to lapsing of appropriations. If the
number of Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts significantly increases
after fiscal year 2020-2021, the department may request an increase in
the amount appropriated to the fund in any subsequent fiscal year in the budget
estimate submitted pursuant to section 35-113. The department
shall list monies in the fund as a separate line item in its budget estimate.

E. The state treasurer empowerment scholarship
account fund is established consisting of monies appropriated by the
legislature. The state treasurer shall administer the fund.� Monies
in the fund shall be used for the state treasurer's costs in administering the
Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts under this chapter. If the
number of Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts significantly increases
after fiscal year 2020-2021, the state treasurer may request an increase
in the amount appropriated to the fund in any subsequent fiscal year in the
budget estimate submitted pursuant to section 35-113. Monies
in the fund are subject to legislative appropriation.� Monies in the fund are
exempt from the provisions of section 35-190 relating to lapsing of
appropriations. The state treasurer shall list monies in the fund as
a separate line item in its budget estimate.

F. A parent must renew the qualified student's
Arizona empowerment scholarship account on an annual basis. The
department of education shall verify that the parent's child is a qualified
student as defined in section 15-2401 or 15-2401.01 in the year for
which the parent seeks to renew the Arizona empowerment scholarship account.� This
subsection does not require the department to annually verify the child's
disability for the purpose of section 15-2401, paragraph 7, subdivision (a),
item (i), (ii) or (iii), if applicable.

G. Notwithstanding any changes to the student's
multidisciplinary evaluation team plan, a student who has previously qualified
for an Arizona empowerment scholarship account remains eligible to apply for
renewal until the student finishes high school.

H. If a parent does not renew the qualified
student's Arizona empowerment scholarship account for a period of three
academic years, the department shall notify the parent that the qualified
student's account will be closed in sixty calendar days. The
notification must be sent
through
by

certified mail, email and telephone, if applicable.� The parent has sixty
calendar days to renew the qualified student's Arizona empowerment scholarship
account. If the parent chooses not to renew or does not respond
in
within
sixty calendar days, the
department shall close the account and any remaining monies shall be returned
to
the
this
state.

I. A signed agreement under this section constitutes
school attendance required by section 15-802.

J. A qualified school or a provider of services
purchased pursuant to subsection B, paragraph 4 of this section may not share,
refund or rebate any Arizona empowerment scholarship account monies with the
parent or qualified student in any manner.

K. Notwithstanding subsection H of this section, on
the qualified student's graduation from a postsecondary institution or after
any period of four consecutive years after high school graduation in which the
student is not enrolled in an eligible postsecondary institution, but not
before this time as long as the account holder continues using a portion of
account monies for allowable expenses each year and is in good standing, the
qualified student's Arizona empowerment scholarship account shall be closed and
any remaining monies shall be returned to the state.

L. Monies received pursuant to this article do not
constitute taxable income to the parent of the qualified student.
END_STATUTE