House Bill 2487 Provide Free Community College for two years to Arizona residents

State of Arizona
House of Representatives
Fifty-second Legislature
First Regular Session
2015
HB 2487
Introduced by
Representatives Bolding, Andrade, Cardenas: Espinoza, Fernandez, Hale, McCune Davis, Mendez, Meyer, Otondo, Wheeler
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 15-1445, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
15-1445. Administrative powers and duties of district governing boards
A district board shall:
1. Adopt policies for the government of the community colleges under its jurisdiction.
2. In conjunction with other district boards, set standards for the establishment, development, administration, operation and accreditation of community colleges in the district.
3. Fix tuitions and graduate the tuitions and fees between institutions and between residents, nonresidents and students from foreign countries. The district board shall waive the first two years of tuition and fees for students who reside in this state and who maintain a grade point average of at least 2.5 on a 4.0 scale, or the equivalent, for the duration of the two year tuition waiver period. The district board may waive tuitions and fees and graduate tuitions and waivers for an employee or the spouse or dependent child of an employee of the district, or for a nonresident student enrolled in the district if the district board determines the waiver is in the best interest of this state and the student.
4. In conjunction with other district boards, submit to the economic estimates commission before January 10 of each year the estimated number of full time equivalent students for the district as prescribed in section 15 1466.01.
5. Establish curriculums curricula and designate courses that in its judgment will best serve the interests of this state.
6. Determine academic classes that qualify as open entry, open exit classes and prescribe policies for the operation of open entry, open exit classes.
7. In conjunction with other district boards and the state board of education, review and adopt, within the scope of the statutory definitions of vocational and technological technical education, program and staff standards with modifications as necessary for courses taught in community colleges. The district board shall base the standards on vocational and technological technical competence.
8. In conjunction with other district boards, establish qualifications of the instructional staff that, at a minimum, shall be equal to those required to meet accreditation guidelines and establish standards of vocational and technological technical competence required to instruct in occupational as well as academic subjects.
9. In conjunction with other district boards, prescribe guidelines providing for the transferability between community college district vocational and technological technical education programs and in conjunction with the state board of education prescribe guidelines for the interrelationship of secondary programs and postsecondary programs.
10. In conjunction with other district boards, prescribe the manner in which the self evaluation of vocational and technological technical education programs is conducted as provided in section 15 1452.
11. If requested by the state board of education, assist in the preparation, publication and distribution of an annual state plan and a comprehensive five-year state plan.
12. In conjunction with other district boards and the state board of education, develop a process to determine program funding priorities for state aid purposes. Each district board shall submit state aid recommendations to the legislature. The recommendations shall be based on the process and on existing cost studies of vocational and technological technical education in this state.
13. In conjunction with other district boards, prescribe qualifications for admission to community colleges for honorably discharged veterans who served on active duty in the armed forces for a minimum of one year and who were previously enrolled at a community college or university in this state. For the purpose of determining the qualifications, the district board may not consider prior failing grades received by the veteran at a community college or university in this state.
14. Require the publisher of each literary and nonliterary textbook used in the community colleges of the district to furnish computer software in a standardized format, when software becomes available for nonliterary textbooks, to the district board from which braille versions of the textbook may be produced.
15. Identify students simultaneously enrolled in a course for both high school and college credit by using the same student level data element required by section 15 1042, subsection A. The auditor general shall have access to this information when certifying the full time equivalent student enrollment pursuant to section 15 1466.01, paragraph 4.
16. Beginning July 1, 2007, purchase Acquire United States flags that are manufactured in the United States and that are at least two feet by three feet and hardware to appropriately display the United States flag and purchase flags, acquire a legible copy of the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights that is manufactured in the United States, and display the flags in each classroom in accordance with title 4 of the United States Code and display a legible copy of the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights adjacent to the flag.
Sec. 2. Conditional enactment; notice
A. This act does not become effective unless both:
1. Funding is provided under federal law to reimburse community colleges for at least seventy five percent of the cost of the tuition and fee waivers prescribed in this act.
2. Funding is provided by this state to reimburse community colleges for at least twenty five percent of the cost of the tuition and fee waivers prescribed in this act.
B. On or before December 31, 2025, the state treasurer shall notify in writing the director of the Arizona legislative council of the date on which the condition is met or if the condition is not met.