AZ HB2510

Establishes a five-year experienced teacher retention pilot program allowing eligible teachers, their spouses, and dependents to receive a 75% tuition discount at Arizona Board of Regents universities.

Eligible participants include certificated teachers with at least 10 years of employment in Arizona public schools or charter schools, plus their spouses and dependents; teachers with 3-10 years of experience may participate only for graduate education degrees and must commit to teaching 2 additional years.

Participants who fail to meet service requirements or have their teaching certificate revoked must repay the amount of discounted tuition received to the department of education.

Appropriates $15 million annually from the state general fund for fiscal years 2016-2017 through 2020-2021, with up to 2% retained for program administration; all unencumbered funds revert to the general fund by July 1, 2022.

Program includes reporting requirements with initial report due September 15, 2019 and final report due September 15, 2022, documenting participation numbers, impact on teacher shortage, and program effectiveness; program expires December 31, 2022.