Audit finds many Arizona schools aren't meeting safety requirements

PHOENIX - Every school in Arizona is required to have an emergency plan in place in case the worst happens, but a new state audit couldn't find a single school that met the minimum requirements for a safety plan.

The state audit by the Arizona Auditor General says without emergency operations plans (EOPs) that meet state minimums, it could affect a school's ability to protect students in emergencies.

Some state legislators are already working on ways to fix this.

While watching her kids play, Lucy Aguirre says she won't send her kids to school over safety concerns.

"I choose to home school because of those same reasons we always hear on the news or social media. All kinds of things going on," she said.

A new state audit didn't ease her fears.

"It's concerning for all the kids," Aguirre said.

The Dec. 9 state auditor general report reviewed Arizona school emergency operation plans. It found none of the schools it looked at met the minimum standards, and not one school had fully implemented or tested their plans.

In fact, most didn't even meet half the minimum state standards.

"If a parent is concerned, they should contact the schools," said Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tom Horne.

At a state legislative hearing, the Arizona Department of Education said it provided the information, but Horne says they can't enforce these schools to comply with the state requirements.

"We do not have the authority to ensure compliance," said Mike Kurtenbach, Arizona Department of Education's School Safety Director.

‘Schools are 100% committed to making their campuses safe’

"We're a local control state, so we can't force them. We can give them information, and we send them so many emails it starts to look like white noise," Horne said.

"There is definitely a disconnect between the requirements and what the schools are implementing," said Arizona State Rep. Charles Lucking.

He said there are legislative solutions, like creating a way for the safety plan requirements to be met.

"Schools are 100% committed to making their campuses safe. No one wants these incidents to happen, so the schools are putting into place processes. Almost all of them have safety protocols in place. The disconnect is, what are the state requirements for those and what are the schools putting in place?" Rep. Lucking said.

Horne also hinted they might be asking for more resources to monitor schools going forward.