News & Events

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled yesterday that claims under Section 504 and the ADA which do not seek relief available under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) can be filed directly in court, skipping the IDEA’s administrative process. In Fry v. Napoleon Community Schools, the parents of a student […]

While schools were closed for winter break, the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) released several new guidance documents regarding children with disabilities. These resources summarize and update previous guidance in three main categories: In a Parent and Educator Resource Guide to Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act, […]

Proposition 206, the Fair Wages and Healthy Families Act (the “Act”), was approved by Arizona voters on November 8, 2016. The Act establishes a new state minimum wage of $10.00 effective January 1, 2017. The Act also entitles employees to accrue earned paid sick time beginning July 1, 2017. The […]

November 23, 2016 – A federal judge in Texas granted a nationwide preliminary injunction yesterday temporarily blocking the new overtime regulations scheduled to take effect on December 1. Twenty-one states, including Arizona, and over 50 business organizations sued to challenge the new regulations that were issued by the Department of […]

We recently received notice from the Arizona Deputy Treasurer that many bond issuers failed to file their annual report by June 30 as required by A.R.S. §35-501. Counties, cities, towns, school districts, irrigation districts, other political subdivisions and municipal property corporations (collectively “Issuers”) are required to file reports of all […]

On September 29, 2016, the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (the “ADEQ”) re-issued the Small MS4 Stormwater General Permit, AZG2016-002 (the “Permit”) to provide coverage to existing and new MS4s for the discharge of stormwater to waters of the U.S. within Arizona. Key updates include: Existing permittees must update their […]

The Texas Federal Court has granted the plaintiffs a preliminary injunction in the Title IX case concerning access to school bathrooms, locker rooms and other intimate areas. The Arizona Department of Education and Heber-Overgaard USD are two of the plaintiffs. The order prevents the USDOE and DOJ “from enforcing the […]

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is actively addressing the issue of website accessibility for persons with disabilities in Arizona and nationally. OCR has authority to enforce Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Under these laws, OCR can investigate whether a school district has […]

Last week, the plaintiffs in the case Texas v. United States (which include the Arizona Department of Education and an Arizona school district) filed a motion for preliminary injunction seeking to enjoin the US Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights and the Department of Justice from enforcing their recent […]

On December 10, 2016, provisions of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) related to children in foster care will take effect. The Arizona Department of Education, child welfare agencies and local educational agencies are tasked with working together to ensure the educational stability of these students. The provisions address creating […]