AZ HB2151

Establishes a three-year experienced teacher retention pilot program allowing eligible participants to receive a 75 percent tuition discount at Arizona Board of Regents universities.

Eligible participants include certificated teachers with 10+ years employment in Arizona schools, their spouses, and dependents; teachers with 3-9 years experience may participate if pursuing graduate degrees in their subject area and agree to teach 4+ additional years.

Department of Education must prioritize rural school teachers (defined as schools in counties with ≤10% state population or >10 miles from cities with 50,000+ residents) and select applicants on first-come, first-served basis.

Appropriates $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2021-2022, with $2,000,000-$2,500,000 for 2022-2023 and up to $5,000,000 for 2023-2024 depending on funding utilization; includes $100,000 for impact study due by December 31, 2025.

Program automatically repeals February 15, 2028; department may retain up to 2 percent of annual appropriations for administration.