[JURIST] Arizona Governor Doug Ducey [campaign website] on Thursday signed legislation that will require all Arizona High School students to take and pass the US Citizenship test before they are able to graduate, beginning in the 2016-17 school year. Supporters from the Arizona State Legislature [official website] introduced the American Civics Act [HB 2064] in an effort to increase civics education and basic government knowledge, the deficiency of which House Majority Leader Steve Montenegro [official website] says is “alarming” based on findings in a federal study. However, opponents of the new law believe other more efficient ways to teach students US government principles might exist. Opponents also express skepticism over the fact that the bill was passed subsequent to a court order forcing Arizona to repay schools for funding that was cut off years ago during the recession. Congressman Juan Mendez [official website] expressed his opposition, stating:

In the midst of a budget crisis, after we purposely underfunded our public schools, we rush this piece of legislation through in the first week even before we’ve addressed the investment the courts have ordered us to [pay] to our public schools.

Arizona will be the first state requiring [Guardian report] students to pass a test before graduating high school.

Arizona’s American Civics Act was introduced as a way to further the Civics Education Initiative [advocacy website]. Former Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O’Connor [official website] and the Joe Foss Institute [official website], a non-profit organization dedicated to teaching civics to American students, both support the new law. The Joe Foss Institute has reported [press release, PDF] that 15 state legislatures are expected to consider similar initiatives within the next year. The North Dakota legislature is presently considering a similar bill [HB 1087, PDF], for which the House of Representatives has shown overwhelming support through an 85-1 vote in the bill’s favor.