SB 1327 Arizona Senate · 57th Legislature - Second Regular Session

ABOR; foreign countries; restrictions; penalties

SB 1327 amends Arizona law to require the Board of Regents to differentiate tuition and fees for students based on whether they are from foreign countries. This directly affects Arizona public universities and their international students, who would pay higher rates than in-state or out-of-state domestic students. The bill adds "students from foreign countries" as a specific category for tuition differentiation under existing authority, while maintaining the 145-credit-hour threshold for undergraduate tuition rates. It also mandates annual reporting to the legislature on students meeting this threshold.

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

House Passage

Jun 2026

Signed into Law

Jun 2026

Introduced Jan 26, 2026 Signed Jun 19, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Senate Engrossed Version (03/04/2026) → Chaptered Version · 3 edits

MINOR

The document was converted from a draft Senate Bill into an official Chaptered Version, signifying that the legislation has been approved by the Governor and filed with the Secretary of State. This change transforms the text from a proposed law into an enacted statute, making it legally binding as of June 19, 2026.

TIMELINE

Added the official approval date of June 19, 2026, by the Governor.

Added the filing date of June 22, 2026, in the Office of the Secretary of State.

TECHNICAL

Updated the document header to reflect its status as Chapter 170 of the 2026 session rather than a Senate Bill.

Introduced Version → Senate Engrossed Version (03/04/2026) · 8 edits · Mar 4, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was significantly rewritten to replace strict foreign gift restrictions with a requirement for universities to adopt internal research security policies. The new version removes the previous mandate that universities reject gifts from foreign principals without federal security clearance, instead focusing on safeguarding research, promoting security culture, and complying with federal regulations. It also eliminates the creation of a new 'Research Security Council' and the specific prohibitions on recognizing student associations tied to foreign entities.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from external restrictions on foreign funding and partnerships to internal university governance regarding research security. The applicability changed from a blanket ban on certain foreign interactions to a requirement for universities to establish their own security protocols and report on their compliance.

REQUIREMENT

Removed the requirement for the Arizona Board of Regents to review and potentially disapprove gifts, contracts, or partnerships from foreign principals.

Removed the mandate that universities must reject any gift, contract, or partnership from a foreign principal unless a federal security assessment was completed.

Deleted the prohibition on universities recognizing student associations that accept gifts or enter agreements with foreign principals.

Added a requirement for each university to establish, adopt, and post a research security policy on its website.

Added specific policy requirements including safeguards for research, promotion of security culture, and mitigation of threats from foreign adversary nations.

DEFINITION

Removed the detailed statutory definition of 'foreign principal' and the creation of the 'higher education research security council'.

ENFORCEMENT

Changed enforcement from the Attorney General imposing civil penalties for accepting foreign gifts to general compliance with the new university research security policies.

TIMELINE

Removed the requirement to submit a report on past foreign gifts received between December 2019 and the effective date of the act.

Floor votes · House Jun 9, 2026

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Jun 19, 2026

Signed into law

Signed by Governor

executive

Jun 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

PASSED

lower

Apr 14, 2026

Lower · Passed

lower

Mar 25, 2026

Lower · Passed

lower

Mar 4, 2026

Upper · Passed

PASSED

upper

Mar 4, 2026

Upper · Passed

DPA

upper

Feb 11, 2026

Upper · Passed

DPA/SE

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors