(1) The state board shall establish rigorous core standards for Utah public schools and graduation requirements under Section 53E-3-501 for grades 9 through 12 that:
(a) are consistent with state law and federal regulations;
(b) use competency-based standards and assessments;
(c) include instruction that stresses general financial literacy from basic budgeting to financial investments, including bankruptcy education and a general financial literacy test-out option;
(d) include graduation requirements in language arts, mathematics, and science that exceed:
(i) 3.0 units in language arts including up to 0.5 units emphasizing verbal communication completed in a course or a school sponsored activity;
(ii) 2.0 units in mathematics; and
(iii) and 2.0 units in science; and
(e) include a graduation requirement in social studies that is equal to or exceeds 3.5 units, including at least 1.0 unit in American constitutional government and citizenship as described in Section 53E-4-205.2;
(f) ensure up to 0.5 units described in Subsection (1)(e) may be earned by:
(i) completing a course or a school sponsored activity emphasizing verbal communication provided that a significant portion of the course or activity is dedicated to civic education, including:
(A) policy analysis;
(B) governmental systems; and
(C) civic engagement; or
(ii) participation in the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps described in 10 U.S.C Sec. 2031.
(2) The state board shall establish competency-based standards and assessments for elective courses.
(3) The state board shall study requiring all LEAs to issue a high school diploma to students who receive:
(a) an associate's degree with at least 60 credit hours from an accredited post-secondary institution; or
(b) an industry certification with at least 500 hours of instruction from a business, trade association, or other industry group in accordance with Section 53E-3-501.