Law school tuition waiver proposed for state residents

Students utilizing the grant would then have to repay the loan by practicing law in a rural area of Arizona deemed to be "under served," or by becoming a public defender in any city across the state.

The bill comes two weeks after a proposal by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee to completely phase out all state-issued law school funding.

The sponsor of SB 1154, Sen. Randall Gnant, R-Scottsdale, said Monday's bill would be fair if the proposal to eliminate the state's law school subsidy passes.

Gnant said one year of a waived tuition payment would be rewarded to each UA law school graduate for each year they served in a rural area or as a public defender.

Current annual tuition rates for the law school are roughly $4,500 for Arizona residents and $11,500 for non-residents.

Gnant, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, is a driving force behind the JLBC's plan to phase out law-school funding.

He said last week that his proposal was meant to be an emotional wake-up call to legislators and state officials, alerting them that Arizona does not have a large budget surplus to fund programs.

"I've got no objection to giving students access to higher education," Gnant said.

If passed, the bill would establish a "Law Student Loan Fund." The Arizona Board of Regents would then hand out an unspecified number of tuition waivers to in-state students attending the school.

Once a student has fulfilled the obligation to practice law in Arizona, the Legislature would then repay the Board.

UA Law School Dean Joel Seligman said the bill is "at best, a partial response to the injury he (Gnant) proposed to the law school."

Seligman said only a small number of students would be affected by the measure, adding that only about 3 percent to 5 percent of UA law school graduates remain in the state to practice law.

"You don't need a governmental regulation for this," Seligman said. "If you adopted one, it would backfire."

Potential students would choose other schools, he added, because they would not be bound to working in the state upon graduation.

Seligman said that out of the 150 students accepted each fall, 113 of those - or 75 percent - must be Arizona residents.

The law school at Arizona State University would be affected in the same manner if SB 1154 is passed.