HB 2503 Summary

• Expands eligibility for Arizona empowerment scholarship accounts to include students who are alleged victims of assault, harassment, hazing, kidnapping, aggravated assault, theft, burglary, sexual harassment, sexual offenses, threatening/intimidation, fighting, sex trafficking, or trafficking for forced labor occurring on school grounds, school buses, bus stops, or school-sponsored events.

• Requires school principals to provide copies of police reports or court pleadings involving eligible incidents to parents of alleged victims within 24 hours and notify parents about empowerment scholarship account eligibility within 15 days of incident report or investigation conclusion, whichever is first.

• Directs the Department of Education to cross-check qualified student lists with public school enrollment records, maintain a list of nationally norm-referenced tests, and require quarterly reports from nonprofit scholarship funding organizations.

• Requires the Department to contract with an independent entity to conduct annual reviews of school incident prevention programs, assess investigation quality and communication procedures, analyze discipline data, and survey parents about academic performance and safety concerns.

• Designates the act as the "Lifeline for Student Crime Victims Act."