Arizona charter schools face a $1,000 fine for violating state fingerprinting requirements under a measure approved by the Legislature April 4.
The bill, H2041, sponsored by Rep. Mark Anderson, R-18, faced little or no opposition in both chambers. In fact, no lawmaker voted against it on the floor or in committee.
The Senate had passed the measure two days earlier and sent it back to the House for final action. Representatives backed the bill, 55-0, sending it to the governor’s office at press time.
Anderson said the charter school board approached him to push for the measure.
“When charter schools are not in compliance with the fingerprint laws, the charter school board doesn’t have any mechanism to encourage them to come into compliance, because their only tool is to revoke their charter, which is a rather extreme measure,” Anderson said shortly after the bill’s passage.
Anderson, however, thinks only a minority of schools, if any at all, do not comply with fingerprinting requirements, put in place to screen applicants who work directly with children and vulnerable adults.
Law requires fingerprint clearance card
The law requires school personnel who directly or indirectly engage in instructional work to have a fingerprint clearance card. Sex offenders are precluded from getting this card.
The law lists a host of other offenses—ranging from manslaughter to shoplifting to kidnapping—that if committed would stop a person from getting the card.
Also under current statutes, a teacher convicted of a dangerous crime against children and misconduct would have his or her certificate permanently revoked.
But charter schools that do not comply with fingerprinting rules do not face a civil penalty, according to a Senate fact sheet.
“So this gives them an intermediary step to say you’re out of compliance, we are going to fine you with $1,000 and hopefully that will encourage the school to get in compliance with fingerprinting (laws),” Anderson said.
In backing the bill, Sen. Leah Landrum Taylor, D-16, said in committee that it would “assist in making sure that the fingerprint requirements are there and that our children have a good safe environment.”
Fingerprinting helps create a ‘safe environment for children’
“Parents can hopefully rest their heads about that,” she said.
“I wouldn’t say that it’s something that is relevant to the vast majority of charter schools because the vast majority of them do comply, but there is always a few that need a little extra encouragement,” Anderson said, adding that while there is no complete assurance that fingerprinted people would not do harm, this requirement helps achieve a safe environment for children.
The bill has safety nets against penalizing charter schools which might have unintentionally violated the fingerprinting requirements.
Under H2041, a sponsor of a charter school may impose a fine of up $1,000 per occurrence—unless the school has no previous violations and it provides proof within two days that it has complied with the statute.
It also mandates that a charter school sponsor obtain proof that the erring school has been notified of the violation. The notification must specify the compliance date and have the signatures of both the sponsor and the school.
The measure gives the school sponsor the authority to request the Arizona Department of Education to withhold state aid equal to the fine imposed.
An amendment adopted in the Senate removed the requirement that the State Board for Charter Schools post violations on its Web site. Anderson said at press time that he would consult with the board to see if it is agreeable to the amendment.