Bill > SB1726

This bill expands the data reporting requirements for school tuition organizations (STOs), which are organizations that provide scholarships or tuition grants to students to attend private schools, often funded by tax credits. Specifically, it mandates that STOs must now submit detailed student data, including names, scholarship amounts, and the qualified school attended, to the Department of Education by July 1st each year. The Department of Education will then assign a unique student identifier to any student receiving an STO scholarship who isn't already in the state's student accountability system, ensuring better tracking of scholarship recipients. Furthermore, the bill requires STOs to report the number of scholarships awarded within specific dollar ranges and to provide the mean and median scholarship amounts awarded to students at each school, enhancing transparency in how these funds are distributed. The Department of Education will also post more detailed information on its website, including the total dollar amount awarded to each student and a comparison of STO scholarship amounts to public school funding levels, all while ensuring compliance with federal privacy laws like the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

Education

https://apps.azleg.gov/BillStatus/BillOverview/85375