HB 2255 Arizona House · 57th Legislature - Second Regular Session

teachers academy; community college students

HB 2255 establishes Arizona's Teachers Academy to support students pursuing teaching careers. Community college students in teacher preparation programs can receive scholarships covering tuition and fees for up to two years (four semesters) if they agree to teach in Arizona public schools for one year per year of scholarship support. The program prioritizes high-demand areas like special education, STEM, rural schools, and low-income districts, with scholarships requiring repayment if the teaching commitment isn't fulfilled. The initiative is funded through state appropriations and aims to address teacher shortages by linking financial aid to service in Arizona schools.

Issues: ✓ Education

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House Passage

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Apr 2026

Signed into Law

Apr 2026

Introduced Jan 15, 2026 Signed Apr 7, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

House Engrossed Version (02/26/2026) → Chaptered Version · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was formally enacted into law as Chapter 23, finalizing the text of HB 2255. The substantive policy changes include the addition of new provisions requiring students who fail to meet their teaching service obligations to reimburse the state, establishing a formal process for deferring repayment based on board-adopted factors, and clarifying that remaining funds from the previous fiscal year can be used for the next year's costs. The bill also expanded the list of required annual reports to include data on repayment agreements and deferred obligations.

Scope change

The bill's scope was finalized through the enactment process, confirming its effective date and the requirement for a three-fourths legislative vote. The applicability to eligible institutions and students remains consistent with the engrossed version, but the operational rules for funding and repayment were expanded.

ENFORCEMENT

Added a specific requirement for students to reimburse the Arizona Board of Regents for the proportional amount of scholarships they did not earn by failing to teach the agreed-upon number of years.

Established a new process for the Board of Regents to assess students physically or mentally unable to fulfill academy requirements and determine repayment terms.

REQUIREMENT

Created a new provision allowing the Board of Regents to defer service or repayment obligations based on factors adopted by the board.

Expanded annual reporting requirements to include data on students in repayment agreements, deferred repayment agreements, and completed repayment agreements.

FISCAL

Clarified that monies remaining in the Arizona Teachers Academy Fund at the end of a fiscal year may be used for academy costs in the following fiscal year.

TECHNICAL

Updated formatting and section numbering to reflect the final chaptered version, including the addition of START_STATUTE and END_STATUTE markers for legal indexing.

Floor votes · Senate Apr 1, 2026 · House Feb 26, 2026

How they voted

29–1

Passed

Total votes 30

Apr 1, 2026

D Democratic13

13 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican17

16 Yea 1 Nay

94% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Apr 7, 2026

Signed into law

Signed by Governor

executive

Apr 1, 2026

Upper · Passed

PASSED

upper

Apr 1, 2026

Upper · Passed

upper

Mar 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

upper

Feb 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

PASSED

lower

Feb 17, 2026

Lower · Passed

lower

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors