Legislature to Appeal Tucson Judge's ELL Decision

(State Capitol, Phoenix) For the second time in a year, the Legislature will ask a federal appeals court to overturn a bad decision in the long-running English Language Learner lawsuit. House Speaker Jim Weiers and Senate President Tim Bee announced Thursday that the Legislature authorized its attorney to file a notice of appeal of U.S. District Judge Raner Collins' decision last week that ordered lawmakers to devise a rational basis for funding programs to teach the approximately 150,000 ELL students. Last year, Collins fined the state more than $20 million and ordered the Legislature to adequately fund ELL students. The Legislature passed its plan and appealed Collins' fines. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco sided with the Legislature and overturned the fines. The court also ordered Collins to determine whether the circumstances had changed since the lawsuit was filed in 1992. The Legislature's plan requires school districts to identify the costs associated with teaching these students and apply for money from the state. Each district would identify how much it costs to teach English to children who lack those skills rather than just hand out a flat amount per student, something that the federal court found to be "arbitrary and capricious." Collins has rejected part of the Legislature's plan. After taking testimony in January, Collins found there had been improvement but the core issue of arbitrary funding had not changed. "The plan we passed last year takes away the main arguments from proponents; that the state funds these children based on an arbitrary and capricious number," Weiers said. "Judge Collins was overturned last year and I expect the same result this year." "The judge's ruling is extremely disappointing. However, I look forward to developing a solution in the future that will treat all of Arizona's students fairly," Bee said.