Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session

Minnesota Senate Bill SF2002 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1.1 A bill for an act
2	2	1.2 relating to education finance; calculating a school's compensatory revenue eligibility
3	3	1.3 on the basis of both direct certification and the application of education benefits;
4	4	1.4 modifying the percent of compensatory revenue spent at each site under certain
5	5	1.5 conditions; establishing a Compensatory Revenue Task Force; requiring reports;
6	6	1.6 appropriating money; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections 126C.10,
7	7	1.7 subdivision 3b; 126C.15, subdivision 2.
8	8	1.8BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
9	9	1.9 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 126C.10, subdivision 3b, is amended to read:
10	10	1.10 Subd. 3b.Free and reduced-price meals.Beginning October 1, 2024, the commissioner
11	11	1.11shall determine the number of children eligible by means of direct certification and through
12	12	1.12the application of educational benefits to receive either a free or reduced-price meal on
13	13	1.13October 1 each year. Children enrolled in a building on October 1 and determined to be
14	14	1.14eligible by means of direct certification or through the application of educational benefits
15	15	1.15to receive free or reduced-price meals by December 15 of that school year shall be counted
16	16	1.16as eligible on October 1 for purposes of subdivision 3. The commissioner must use federal
17	17	1.17definitions for these purposes. The commissioner may adopt reporting guidelines to assure
18	18	1.18accuracy of data counts and eligibility. Districts must use any guidelines adopted by the
19	19	1.19commissioner.
20	20	1.20 EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective for aid for fiscal year 2026 and later.
21	21	1.21 Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 126C.15, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
22	22	1.22 Subd. 2.Building allocation.(a) A district or cooperative must allocate at least 80
23	23	1.23percent of its compensatory revenue to each school building in the district or cooperative
24	24	1Sec. 2.
25	25	25-02892 as introduced01/30/25 REVISOR CR/HL
26	26	SENATE
27	27	STATE OF MINNESOTA
28	28	S.F. No. 2002NINETY-FOURTH SESSION
29	29	(SENATE AUTHORS: CLARK)
30	30	OFFICIAL STATUSD-PGDATE
31	31	Introduction and first reading02/27/2025
32	32	Referred to Education Finance 2.1where the children who have generated the revenue are served unless the school district or
33	33	2.2cooperative has received permission under Laws 2005, First Special Session chapter 5,
34	34	2.3article 1, section 50, to allocate compensatory revenue according to student performance
35	35	2.4measures developed by the school board.
36	36	2.5 (b) A district or cooperative may allocate no more than 20 percent of the amount of
37	37	2.6compensatory revenue that the district receives to school sites according to a plan adopted
38	38	2.7by the school board. The money reallocated under this paragraph must be spent for the
39	39	2.8purposes listed in subdivision 1, but may be spent on students in any grade, including
40	40	2.9students attending school readiness or other prekindergarten programs.
41	41	2.10 (c) For the purposes of this section and section 126C.05, subdivision 3, "building" means
42	42	2.11education site as defined in section 123B.04, subdivision 1.
43	43	2.12 (d) Notwithstanding section 123A.26, subdivision 1, compensatory revenue generated
44	44	2.13by students served at a cooperative unit shall be paid to the cooperative unit.
45	45	2.14 (e) A district or cooperative with school building openings, school building closings,
46	46	2.15changes in attendance area boundaries, or other changes in programs or student demographics
47	47	2.16between the prior year and the current year may reallocate compensatory revenue among
48	48	2.17sites to reflect these changes. A district or cooperative must report to the department any
49	49	2.18adjustments it makes according to this paragraph and the department must use the adjusted
50	50	2.19compensatory revenue allocations in preparing the report required under section 123B.76,
51	51	2.20subdivision 3, paragraph (c).
52	52	2.21 (f) For fiscal years 2026 and 2027 only, notwithstanding the percentages specified in
53	53	2.22paragraphs (a) and (b), if the district's compensatory pupil count excludes students identified
54	54	2.23through the application of educational benefits, a district may allocate up to 40 percent of
55	55	2.24the amount of compensatory revenue that the district receives to school sites according to
56	56	2.25a plan adopted by the school board, consistent with the purposes listed in subdivision 1.
57	57	2.26 Sec. 3. COMPENSATORY REVENUE TASK FORCE.
58	58	2.27 Subdivision 1.Task force established.A task force is established to analyze the general
59	59	2.28education compensatory revenue formula, including the purpose of the program, the revenue
60	60	2.29levels of the program, the distribution formula for the revenue, and the uses of compensatory
61	61	2.30revenue.
62	62	2.31 Subd. 2.Membership.The commissioner of education must appoint the following
63	63	2.32members to the task force by August 1, 2025:
64	64	2.33 (1) the commissioner of education or the commissioner's designee;
65	65	2Sec. 3.
66	66	25-02892 as introduced01/30/25 REVISOR CR/HL 3.1 (2) the commissioner of revenue or the commissioner's designee;
67	67	3.2 (3) the executive director of the Minnesota School Boards Association or the executive
68	68	3.3director's designee;
69	69	3.4 (4) the executive director of Education Minnesota or the executive director's designee;
70	70	3.5 (5) the executive director of the Minnesota Rural Education Association or the executive
71	71	3.6director's designee;
72	72	3.7 (6) the executive director of the Minnesota Education Equity Partnership or the executive
73	73	3.8director's designee, and one parent of a child eligible for free or reduced-price meals under
74	74	3.9the federal meal standards, appointed by the executive director;
75	75	3.10 (7) the executive director of the Association of Metropolitan School Districts or the
76	76	3.11executive director's designee;
77	77	3.12 (8) a representative of a school district of a city of the first class appointed by the
78	78	3.13executive director of the Association of Metropolitan School Districts;
79	79	3.14 (9) the executive director of the Minnesota Association of Alternative Programs or the
80	80	3.15executive director's designee;
81	81	3.16 (10) the executive director of Schools Advocating for Fair Funding or the executive
82	82	3.17director's designee;
83	83	3.18 (11) the executive director of EdAllies or the executive director's designee, and one
84	84	3.19parent of a child eligible for free or reduced-price meals under the federal meal standards,
85	85	3.20appointed by the executive director;
86	86	3.21 (12) the executive director of the Minnesota Association of School Business Officials
87	87	3.22or the executive director's designee; and
88	88	3.23 (13) the executive director of the Minnesota Association of Charter Schools or the
89	89	3.24executive director's designee.
90	90	3.25 Subd. 3.Duties.The task force must:
91	91	3.26 (1) evaluate which students currently generate compensatory revenue, examine whether
92	92	3.27this student count aligns with students who are under-prepared to learn or otherwise not
93	93	3.28meeting academic standards, and determine the best student population to target with
94	94	3.29compensatory revenue;
95	95	3Sec. 3.
96	96	25-02892 as introduced01/30/25 REVISOR CR/HL 4.1 (2) examine and determine the best proxy and demographic variables to identify students,
97	97	4.2sites, and districts in need of assistance to help students better meet academic standards and
98	98	4.3prepare to learn;
99	99	4.4 (3) examine potential input data elements for determining compensatory revenue,
100	100	4.5including income tax data, census information, and federal school meals eligibility, whether
101	101	4.6identified through direct certification of income from public assistance program participation
102	102	4.7or through the application of educational benefits;
103	103	4.8 (4) determine whether compensatory revenue should be generated at the school district
104	104	4.9or school site level;
105	105	4.10 (5) evaluate whether the compensatory revenue formula should contain a concentration
106	106	4.11formula;
107	107	4.12 (6) examine the interrelationships between the compensatory revenue program and
108	108	4.13extended time revenue program, including summer school, and propose methods to better
109	109	4.14integrate compensatory revenue and extended time revenue; and
110	110	4.15 (7) evaluate the best uses of compensatory revenue.
111	111	4.16 Subd. 4.Compensation.Minnesota Statutes, section 15.059, subdivision 3, governs
112	112	4.17compensation of the members of the task force.
113	113	4.18 Subd. 5.Meetings and administrative support.(a) The commissioner of education or
114	114	4.19the commissioner's designee must convene the first meeting of the task force no later than
115	115	4.20August 15, 2025. The task force must establish a schedule for meetings and meet as necessary
116	116	4.21to accomplish the duties under this section. Meetings are subject to Minnesota Statutes,
117	117	4.22chapter 13D. The task force may meet by telephone or interactive technology consistent
118	118	4.23with Minnesota Statutes, section 13D.015.
119	119	4.24 (b) The Department of Education must provide administrative support to assist the task
120	120	4.25force in its work, including providing information, data, and technical support, and the
121	121	4.26department must assist in the creation of the task force reports.
122	122	4.27 Subd. 6.Reporting.The task force must issue a preliminary report to the legislature by
123	123	4.28February 15, 2026, and a final report to the legislature by February 15, 2027. The reports
124	124	4.29must be prepared and filed consistent with the requirements of Minnesota Statutes, section
125	125	4.303.195.
126	126	4.31 Subd. 7.Expiration.The task force expires February 15, 2027.
127	127	4Sec. 3.
128	128	25-02892 as introduced01/30/25 REVISOR CR/HL 5.1 Sec. 4. APPROPRIATIONS; DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.
129	129	5.2 Subdivision 1.Department of Education.The sums indicated in this section are
130	130	5.3appropriated from the general fund to the Department of Education in the fiscal years
131	131	5.4designated.
132	132	5.5 Subd. 2.Additional compensatory aid.For additional general education aid under
133	133	5.6Minnesota Statutes, section 126C.13:
134	134	2026............5.7 $
135	135	2027............5.8 $
136	136	5.9 Subd. 3.Compensatory Revenue Task Force.For the activities of the Compensatory
137	137	5.10Revenue Task Force:
138	138	2026............5.11 $
139	139	5Sec. 4.
140	140	25-02892 as introduced01/30/25 REVISOR CR/HL