Back to Arizona

HB2896 • 2026

ADE; tribal education liaison office

HB2896 - ADE; tribal education liaison office

Education Privacy
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Myron Tsosie
Last action
2026-01-22
Official status
House second read
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official status indicates the bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, but no effective date is listed in the provided metadata.

HB2896: Tribal Education Liaison Office

This law requires the Arizona Department of Education's superintendent to create a tribal education liaison office that reviews student data and works with tribes.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires the superintendent of public instruction to establish a tribal education liaison office within the department of education.
  • Directs the office to separate, or disaggregate, student data for members of federally recognized Indian tribes or those who identify as Native American whenever possible under federal privacy rules.
  • Asks the office to talk with federally recognized tribes in Arizona about policies and guidelines regarding this separated data.
  • Instructs the office to try making written agreements with tribes on how to use the separated data in culturally appropriate ways.

Who It Names or Affects

  • The superintendent of public instruction
  • Federally recognized Indian tribes in Arizona

Terms To Know

Disaggregate data
Separating information into smaller groups to see details about specific types of students.
Memorandum of understanding
A written agreement between two parties that describes how they will work together.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The office must follow federal privacy rules, which may limit what data can be separated or shared.
  • The law says the superintendent 'may' establish other divisions but 'shall' establish this specific office; it does not specify a start date or budget for the new office.
  • The bill uses the word 'attempt' regarding agreements with tribes, meaning no deal is guaranteed.

Bill History

  1. 2026-01-22 House

    House second read

  2. 2026-01-21 House

    House Rules: None

  3. 2026-01-21 House

    House Education: None

  4. 2026-01-21 House

    House first read

Official Summary Text

HB2896 - ADE; tribal education liaison office

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
HB2896 - 572R - I Ver

REFERENCE TITLE:
ADE; tribal education liaison office

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

HB 2896

Introduced by

Representative
Tsosie

AN
ACT

amending section 15-231, Arizona
Revised Statutes; relating to the department of education.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

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

Section 1. Section 15-231, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
15-231
.
Department of education

A. There is created a department of education.

B. The department shall be administered through:

1. The state board of education, which shall be the
policy-determining body of the department.

2. The superintendent of public instruction, in whom
all executive, administrative and ministerial functions of the department are
vested and who is the executive officer responsible for the execution of
policies of the state board of education.

C. In addition to any divisions established by law,
the superintendent of public instruction may establish such divisions as in the
judgment of the superintendent of public instruction are necessary for the
proper transaction of the business of the department.

D. The department shall be conducted under the
control of the superintendent of public instruction.

E. The superintendent of public
instruction shall establish a tribal education liaison office within the
department of education.� The office shall:

1. To the maximum extent possible and
subject to the requirements prescribed by the family educational rights and
privacy act (20 United States code section 1232
g
), review
all student data that is received or collected by the department and
disaggregate the data for students who are members of a federally recognized
Indian tribe or who identify as native american.

2. Consult with federally recognized
Indian tribes in this state to determine policies and guidelines relating to
the requirements prescribed by paragraph 1 of this subsection.

3. Attempt to enter into a memorandum
of understanding with one or more federally recognized Indian tribes in this
state relating to culturally appropriate uses of data that is disaggregated
pursuant to paragraph 1 of this subsection.
END_STATUTE