| 1 | 1 | | |
|---|
| 2 | 2 | | |
|---|
| 3 | 3 | | |
|---|
| 4 | 4 | | |
|---|
| 5 | 5 | | 2023 -- H 6346 |
|---|
| 6 | 6 | | ======== |
|---|
| 7 | 7 | | LC002614 |
|---|
| 8 | 8 | | ======== |
|---|
| 9 | 9 | | S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D |
|---|
| 10 | 10 | | IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
|---|
| 11 | 11 | | JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023 |
|---|
| 12 | 12 | | ____________ |
|---|
| 13 | 13 | | |
|---|
| 14 | 14 | | A N A C T |
|---|
| 15 | 15 | | RELATING TO EDUCATION -- THE EDUCATION EQUITY AND PROPERTY TAX |
|---|
| 16 | 16 | | RELIEF ACT |
|---|
| 17 | 17 | | Introduced By: Representatives Alzate, and Cortvriend |
|---|
| 18 | 18 | | Date Introduced: April 28, 2023 |
|---|
| 19 | 19 | | Referred To: House Finance |
|---|
| 20 | 20 | | |
|---|
| 21 | 21 | | |
|---|
| 22 | 22 | | It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
|---|
| 23 | 23 | | SECTION 1. Sections 16-7.2-3, 16-7.2-4 and 16-7.2-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-1 |
|---|
| 24 | 24 | | 7.2 entitled "The Education Equity and Property Tax Relief Act" are hereby amended to read as 2 |
|---|
| 25 | 25 | | follows: 3 |
|---|
| 26 | 26 | | 16-7.2-3. Permanent foundation education aid established Permanent foundation 4 |
|---|
| 27 | 27 | | education aid established - Effective fiscal year 2023-2024. 5 |
|---|
| 28 | 28 | | (a) On and after July 1, 2023, Beginning beginning in the 2012 2024 fiscal year, the 6 |
|---|
| 29 | 29 | | following foundation education-aid formula shall take effect. The foundation education aid for each 7 |
|---|
| 30 | 30 | | district shall be the sum of the core instruction amount in subdivision (a)(1) and the amount to 8 |
|---|
| 31 | 31 | | support high-need students in subdivision (a)(2), which shall be multiplied by the district state-9 |
|---|
| 32 | 32 | | share ratio calculated pursuant to § 16-7.2-4 to determine the foundation aid. 10 |
|---|
| 33 | 33 | | (1) The core-instruction amount shall be an amount equal to a statewide, per-pupil core-11 |
|---|
| 34 | 34 | | instruction amount as established by the department of elementary and secondary education, 12 |
|---|
| 35 | 35 | | derived from the average of northeast regional expenditure data for the states of Rhode Island, 13 |
|---|
| 36 | 36 | | Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Hampshire from the National Center for Education Statistics 14 |
|---|
| 37 | 37 | | (NCES) that will adequately fund the student instructional needs as described in the basic education 15 |
|---|
| 38 | 38 | | program and multiplied by the district average daily membership as defined in § 16-7-22. 16 |
|---|
| 39 | 39 | | Expenditure data in the following categories: instruction and support services for students, 17 |
|---|
| 40 | 40 | | instruction, general administration, school administration, and other support services from the 18 |
|---|
| 41 | 41 | | |
|---|
| 42 | 42 | | |
|---|
| 43 | 43 | | LC002614 - Page 2 of 8 |
|---|
| 44 | 44 | | National Public Education Financial Survey, as published by NCES, and enrollment data from the 1 |
|---|
| 45 | 45 | | Common Core of Data, also published by NCES, will be used when determining the core-2 |
|---|
| 46 | 46 | | instruction amount. The core-instruction amount will be updated annually. For the purpose of 3 |
|---|
| 47 | 47 | | calculating this formula, school districts’ resident average daily membership shall exclude charter 4 |
|---|
| 48 | 48 | | school and state-operated school students. 5 |
|---|
| 49 | 49 | | (2) The amount to support high-need students beyond the core-instruction amount shall be 6 |
|---|
| 50 | 50 | | determined by multiplying a student success factor of forty percent (40%) by the core instruction 7 |
|---|
| 51 | 51 | | per-pupil amount described in subdivision (a)(1) and applying that amount for each resident child 8 |
|---|
| 52 | 52 | | whose family income is at or below one hundred eighty-five percent (185%) of federal poverty 9 |
|---|
| 53 | 53 | | guidelines, hereinafter referred to as "poverty status," “poverty status.” By October 1, 2022, as part 10 |
|---|
| 54 | 54 | | of its budget submission pursuant to § 35-3-4 relative to state fiscal year 2024 and thereafter, the 11 |
|---|
| 55 | 55 | | department of elementary and secondary education shall develop and utilize a poverty measure that 12 |
|---|
| 56 | 56 | | in the department’s assessment most accurately serves as a proxy for the poverty status referenced 13 |
|---|
| 57 | 57 | | in this subsection and does not rely on the administration of school nutrition programs. The 14 |
|---|
| 58 | 58 | | department shall utilize this measure in calculations pursuant to this subsection related to the 15 |
|---|
| 59 | 59 | | application of the student success factor, in calculations pursuant to § 16-7.2-4 related to the 16 |
|---|
| 60 | 60 | | calculation of the state share ratio, and in the formulation of estimates pursuant to subsection (b) 17 |
|---|
| 61 | 61 | | below. The department may also include any recommendations which seek to mitigate any 18 |
|---|
| 62 | 62 | | disruptions associated with the implementation of this new poverty measure or improve the 19 |
|---|
| 63 | 63 | | accuracy of its calculation and by the number of English language students (EL), as identified using 20 |
|---|
| 64 | 64 | | independent standards and assessments adopted by the commissioner, including EL students that 21 |
|---|
| 65 | 65 | | do not have a family income at or below one hundred eighty-five percent (185%) of federal poverty 22 |
|---|
| 66 | 66 | | guidelines. 23 |
|---|
| 67 | 67 | | (i) All funds distributed to EL students pursuant to subsection (a)(2) of this section must 24 |
|---|
| 68 | 68 | | be used to provide high-quality, research-based services to such students, and managed in 25 |
|---|
| 69 | 69 | | accordance with requirements set forth by the commissioner of elementary and secondary 26 |
|---|
| 70 | 70 | | education. The department of elementary and secondary education shall collect performance 27 |
|---|
| 71 | 71 | | reports from districts and approve the use of funds prior to expenditure. The department of 28 |
|---|
| 72 | 72 | | elementary and secondary education shall ensure the funds are aligned to activities that are 29 |
|---|
| 73 | 73 | | innovative and expansive and not utilized for activities the district is currently funding. 30 |
|---|
| 74 | 74 | | (b) The department of elementary and secondary education shall provide an estimate of the 31 |
|---|
| 75 | 75 | | foundation education aid cost as part of its budget submission pursuant to § 35-3-4. The estimate 32 |
|---|
| 76 | 76 | | shall include the most recent data available as well as an adjustment for average daily membership 33 |
|---|
| 77 | 77 | | growth or decline based on the prior year experience. 34 |
|---|
| 78 | 78 | | |
|---|
| 79 | 79 | | |
|---|
| 80 | 80 | | LC002614 - Page 3 of 8 |
|---|
| 81 | 81 | | (c) In addition, the department shall report updated figures based on the average daily 1 |
|---|
| 82 | 82 | | membership as of October 1 by December 1. 2 |
|---|
| 83 | 83 | | (d) Local education agencies may set aside a portion of funds received under subsection 3 |
|---|
| 84 | 84 | | (a) to expand learning opportunities such as after school and summer programs, full-day 4 |
|---|
| 85 | 85 | | kindergarten and/or multiple pathway programs, provided that the basic education program and all 5 |
|---|
| 86 | 86 | | other approved programs required in law are funded. 6 |
|---|
| 87 | 87 | | (e) The department of elementary and secondary education shall promulgate such 7 |
|---|
| 88 | 88 | | regulations as are necessary to implement fully the purposes of this chapter. 8 |
|---|
| 89 | 89 | | 16-7.2-4. Determination of state’s share Determination of state’s share - Effective 9 |
|---|
| 90 | 90 | | fiscal year 2023-2024. 10 |
|---|
| 91 | 91 | | (a) For each district, the state’s share of the foundation education aid calculated pursuant 11 |
|---|
| 92 | 92 | | to § 16-7.2-3(a) shall use a calculation that considers a district’s revenue-generating capacity and 12 |
|---|
| 93 | 93 | | concentration of high-need students. The calculation is the square root of the sum of the state-share 13 |
|---|
| 94 | 94 | | ratio for the community calculation, pursuant to § 16-7-20, squared plus the district’s percentage 14 |
|---|
| 95 | 95 | | of students in grades PK-6 in poverty status squared, divided by two. 15 |
|---|
| 96 | 96 | | (1) If the calculation in subsection (a) of this section results in a state share ratio that is less 16 |
|---|
| 97 | 97 | | than the state share ratio for the community, and a school district's percentage of PK-6 students in 17 |
|---|
| 98 | 98 | | poverty is greater than fifty percent (50%), then the state's share of the foundation education aid 18 |
|---|
| 99 | 99 | | shall be made equivalent to the state share ratio for the community. 19 |
|---|
| 100 | 100 | | (2) For FY 2024, the data used to determine the district's percentage of PK-6 students in 20 |
|---|
| 101 | 101 | | poverty shall be the greater of June 2020, 2021, or 2022. 21 |
|---|
| 102 | 102 | | (b) For purposes of determining the state’s share, school district student data used in this 22 |
|---|
| 103 | 103 | | calculation shall include charter school and state school students. These ratios are used in the 23 |
|---|
| 104 | 104 | | permanent foundation education aid formula calculation described in § 16-7.2-5. 24 |
|---|
| 105 | 105 | | (c) The department shall calculate the local share of the foundation aid pursuant to § 16-25 |
|---|
| 106 | 106 | | 7.2-3(a) and each community shall fund its school district at or above the level calculated on or 26 |
|---|
| 107 | 107 | | before July 1, 2028; provided that, no community shall reduce its support until the school 27 |
|---|
| 108 | 108 | | committee is funded at the full amount of the local share. 28 |
|---|
| 109 | 109 | | 16-7.2-6. Categorical programs, state funded expenses Categorical programs, state 29 |
|---|
| 110 | 110 | | funded expenses - Effective fiscal year 2023-2024. 30 |
|---|
| 111 | 111 | | In addition to the foundation education aid provided pursuant to § 16-7.2-3, the permanent 31 |
|---|
| 112 | 112 | | foundation education-aid program shall provide direct state funding for: 32 |
|---|
| 113 | 113 | | (a) Excess costs associated with special education students. Excess costs are defined when 33 |
|---|
| 114 | 114 | | an individual special education student’s cost shall be deemed to be “extraordinary.” Extraordinary 34 |
|---|
| 115 | 115 | | |
|---|
| 116 | 116 | | |
|---|
| 117 | 117 | | LC002614 - Page 4 of 8 |
|---|
| 118 | 118 | | costs are those educational costs that exceed the state-approved threshold based on an amount 1 |
|---|
| 119 | 119 | | above five times the core foundation amount (total of core-instruction amount plus student success 2 |
|---|
| 120 | 120 | | amount). The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available 3 |
|---|
| 121 | 121 | | for distribution among those eligible school districts if the total approved costs for which school 4 |
|---|
| 122 | 122 | | districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount of funding appropriated in any fiscal year; 5 |
|---|
| 123 | 123 | | and the department of elementary and secondary education shall also collect data on those 6 |
|---|
| 124 | 124 | | educational costs that exceed the state-approved threshold based on an amount above two (2), three 7 |
|---|
| 125 | 125 | | (3), and four (4) times the core-foundation amount; 8 |
|---|
| 126 | 126 | | (b) Career and technical education costs to help meet initial investment requirements 9 |
|---|
| 127 | 127 | | needed to transform existing, or create new, comprehensive, career and technical education 10 |
|---|
| 128 | 128 | | programs and career pathways in critical and emerging industries and to help offset the higher-11 |
|---|
| 129 | 129 | | than-average costs associated with facilities, equipment maintenance and repair, and supplies 12 |
|---|
| 130 | 130 | | necessary for maintaining the quality of highly specialized programs that are a priority for the state. 13 |
|---|
| 131 | 131 | | The department shall develop criteria for the purpose of allocating any and all career and technical 14 |
|---|
| 132 | 132 | | education funds as may be determined by the general assembly on an annual basis. The department 15 |
|---|
| 133 | 133 | | of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among 16 |
|---|
| 134 | 134 | | those eligible school districts if the total approved costs for which school districts are seeking 17 |
|---|
| 135 | 135 | | reimbursement exceed the amount of funding available in any fiscal year; 18 |
|---|
| 136 | 136 | | (c) Programs to increase access to voluntary, free, high-quality pre-kindergarten programs. 19 |
|---|
| 137 | 137 | | The department shall recommend criteria for the purpose of allocating any and all early childhood 20 |
|---|
| 138 | 138 | | program funds as may be determined by the general assembly; 21 |
|---|
| 139 | 139 | | (d) Central Falls, Davies, and the Met Center Stabilization Fund is established to ensure 22 |
|---|
| 140 | 140 | | that appropriate funding is available to support their students. Additional support for Central Falls 23 |
|---|
| 141 | 141 | | is needed due to concerns regarding the city’s capacity to meet the local share of education costs. 24 |
|---|
| 142 | 142 | | This fund requires that education aid calculated pursuant to § 16-7.2-3 and funding for costs outside 25 |
|---|
| 143 | 143 | | the permanent foundation education-aid formula, including, but not limited to, transportation, 26 |
|---|
| 144 | 144 | | facility maintenance, and retiree health benefits shall be shared between the state and the city of 27 |
|---|
| 145 | 145 | | Central Falls. The fund shall be annually reviewed to determine the amount of the state and city 28 |
|---|
| 146 | 146 | | appropriation. The state’s share of this fund may be supported through a reallocation of current 29 |
|---|
| 147 | 147 | | state appropriations to the Central Falls school district. At the end of the transition period defined 30 |
|---|
| 148 | 148 | | in § 16-7.2-7, the municipality will continue its contribution pursuant to § 16-7-24. Additional 31 |
|---|
| 149 | 149 | | support for the Davies and the Met Center is needed due to the costs associated with running a 32 |
|---|
| 150 | 150 | | stand-alone high school offering both academic and career and technical coursework. The 33 |
|---|
| 151 | 151 | | department shall recommend criteria for the purpose of allocating any and all stabilization funds as 34 |
|---|
| 152 | 152 | | |
|---|
| 153 | 153 | | |
|---|
| 154 | 154 | | LC002614 - Page 5 of 8 |
|---|
| 155 | 155 | | may be determined by the general assembly; 1 |
|---|
| 156 | 156 | | (e) Excess costs associated with transporting students to out-of-district non-public schools. 2 |
|---|
| 157 | 157 | | This fund will provide state funding for the costs associated with transporting students to out-of-3 |
|---|
| 158 | 158 | | district non-public schools, pursuant to chapter 21.1 of this title. The state will assume the costs of 4 |
|---|
| 159 | 159 | | non-public out-of-district transportation for those districts participating in the statewide system. 5 |
|---|
| 160 | 160 | | The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available for 6 |
|---|
| 161 | 161 | | distribution among those eligible school districts if the total approved costs for which school 7 |
|---|
| 162 | 162 | | districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount of funding available in any fiscal year; 8 |
|---|
| 163 | 163 | | (f) Excess costs associated with transporting students within regional school districts. This 9 |
|---|
| 164 | 164 | | fund will provide direct state funding for the excess costs associated with transporting students 10 |
|---|
| 165 | 165 | | within regional school districts, established pursuant to chapter 3 of this title. This fund requires 11 |
|---|
| 166 | 166 | | that the state and regional school district share equally the student transportation costs net any 12 |
|---|
| 167 | 167 | | federal sources of revenue for these expenditures. The department of elementary and secondary 13 |
|---|
| 168 | 168 | | education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among those eligible school districts if 14 |
|---|
| 169 | 169 | | the total approved costs for which school districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount 15 |
|---|
| 170 | 170 | | of funding available in any fiscal year; 16 |
|---|
| 171 | 171 | | (g) Public school districts that are regionalized shall be eligible for a regionalization bonus 17 |
|---|
| 172 | 172 | | as set forth below: 18 |
|---|
| 173 | 173 | | (1) As used herein, the term “regionalized” shall be deemed to refer to a regional school 19 |
|---|
| 174 | 174 | | district established under the provisions of chapter 3 of this title, including the Chariho Regional 20 |
|---|
| 175 | 175 | | School district; 21 |
|---|
| 176 | 176 | | (2) For those districts that are regionalized as of July 1, 2010, the regionalization bonus 22 |
|---|
| 177 | 177 | | shall commence in FY 2012. For those districts that regionalize after July 1, 2010, the 23 |
|---|
| 178 | 178 | | regionalization bonus shall commence in the first fiscal year following the establishment of a 24 |
|---|
| 179 | 179 | | regionalized school district as set forth in chapter 3 of this title, including the Chariho Regional 25 |
|---|
| 180 | 180 | | School District; 26 |
|---|
| 181 | 181 | | (3) The regionalization bonus in the first fiscal year shall be two percent (2.0%) of the 27 |
|---|
| 182 | 182 | | state’s share of the foundation education aid for the regionalized district as calculated pursuant to 28 |
|---|
| 183 | 183 | | §§ 16-7.2-3 and 16-7.2-4 in that fiscal year; 29 |
|---|
| 184 | 184 | | (4) The regionalization bonus in the second fiscal year shall be one percent (1.0%) of the 30 |
|---|
| 185 | 185 | | state’s share of the foundation education aid for the regionalized district as calculated pursuant to 31 |
|---|
| 186 | 186 | | §§ 16-7.2-3 and 16-7.2-4 in that fiscal year; 32 |
|---|
| 187 | 187 | | (5) The regionalization bonus shall cease in the third fiscal year; 33 |
|---|
| 188 | 188 | | (6) The regionalization bonus for the Chariho regional school district shall be applied to 34 |
|---|
| 189 | 189 | | |
|---|
| 190 | 190 | | |
|---|
| 191 | 191 | | LC002614 - Page 6 of 8 |
|---|
| 192 | 192 | | the state share of the permanent foundation education aid for the member towns; and 1 |
|---|
| 193 | 193 | | (7) The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available 2 |
|---|
| 194 | 194 | | for distribution among those eligible regionalized school districts if the total, approved costs for 3 |
|---|
| 195 | 195 | | which regionalized school districts are seeking a regionalization bonus exceed the amount of 4 |
|---|
| 196 | 196 | | funding appropriated in any fiscal year; 5 |
|---|
| 197 | 197 | | (h) Additional state support for English learners (EL). The amount to support EL students 6 |
|---|
| 198 | 198 | | shall be determined by multiplying an EL factor of ten percent (10%) by the core-instruction per-7 |
|---|
| 199 | 199 | | pupil amount defined in § 16-7.2-3(a)(1) and applying that amount of additional state support to 8 |
|---|
| 200 | 200 | | EL students identified using widely adopted, independent standards and assessments identified by 9 |
|---|
| 201 | 201 | | the commissioner. All categorical funds distributed pursuant to this subsection must be used to 10 |
|---|
| 202 | 202 | | provide high-quality, research-based services to EL students and managed in accordance with 11 |
|---|
| 203 | 203 | | requirements set forth by the commissioner of elementary and secondary education. The 12 |
|---|
| 204 | 204 | | department of elementary and secondary education shall collect performance reports from districts 13 |
|---|
| 205 | 205 | | and approve the use of funds prior to expenditure. The department of elementary and secondary 14 |
|---|
| 206 | 206 | | education shall ensure the funds are aligned to activities that are innovative and expansive and not 15 |
|---|
| 207 | 207 | | utilized for activities the district is currently funding. The department of elementary and secondary 16 |
|---|
| 208 | 208 | | education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among eligible recipients if the total 17 |
|---|
| 209 | 209 | | calculated costs exceed the amount of funding available in any fiscal year; 18 |
|---|
| 210 | 210 | | (i) State support for school resource officers. For purposes of this subsection, a school 19 |
|---|
| 211 | 211 | | resource officer (SRO) shall be defined as a career law enforcement officer with sworn authority 20 |
|---|
| 212 | 212 | | who is deployed by an employing police department or agency in a community-oriented policing 21 |
|---|
| 213 | 213 | | assignment to work in collaboration with one or more schools. School resource officers should have 22 |
|---|
| 214 | 214 | | completed at least forty (40) hours of specialized training in school policing, administered by an 23 |
|---|
| 215 | 215 | | accredited agency, before being assigned. Beginning in FY 2019, for a period of three (3) years, 24 |
|---|
| 216 | 216 | | school districts or municipalities that choose to employ school resource officers shall receive direct 25 |
|---|
| 217 | 217 | | state support for costs associated with employing such officers at public middle and high schools. 26 |
|---|
| 218 | 218 | | Districts or municipalities shall be reimbursed an amount equal to one-half (½) of the cost of 27 |
|---|
| 219 | 219 | | salaries and benefits for the qualifying positions. Funding will be provided for school resource 28 |
|---|
| 220 | 220 | | officer positions established on or after July 1, 2018, provided that: 29 |
|---|
| 221 | 221 | | (1) Each school resource officer shall be assigned to one school: 30 |
|---|
| 222 | 222 | | (i) Schools with enrollments below one thousand twelve hundred (1,200) students shall 31 |
|---|
| 223 | 223 | | require one school resource officer; 32 |
|---|
| 224 | 224 | | (ii) Schools with enrollments of one thousand twelve hundred (1,200) or more students 33 |
|---|
| 225 | 225 | | shall require two school resource officers; 34 |
|---|
| 226 | 226 | | |
|---|
| 227 | 227 | | |
|---|
| 228 | 228 | | LC002614 - Page 7 of 8 |
|---|
| 229 | 229 | | (2) School resource officers hired in excess of the requirement noted above shall not be 1 |
|---|
| 230 | 230 | | eligible for reimbursement; and 2 |
|---|
| 231 | 231 | | (3) Schools that eliminate existing school resource officer positions and create new 3 |
|---|
| 232 | 232 | | positions under this provision shall not be eligible for reimbursement; and 4 |
|---|
| 233 | 233 | | (j) Categorical programs defined in subsections (a) through (g) shall be funded pursuant to 5 |
|---|
| 234 | 234 | | the transition plan in § 16-7.2-7. 6 |
|---|
| 235 | 235 | | SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on July 1, 2023 and be applicable for the 2023-2024 7 |
|---|
| 236 | 236 | | fiscal year. 8 |
|---|
| 237 | 237 | | ======== |
|---|
| 238 | 238 | | LC002614 |
|---|
| 239 | 239 | | ======== |
|---|
| 240 | 240 | | |
|---|
| 241 | 241 | | |
|---|
| 242 | 242 | | LC002614 - Page 8 of 8 |
|---|
| 243 | 243 | | EXPLANATION |
|---|
| 244 | 244 | | BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL |
|---|
| 245 | 245 | | OF |
|---|
| 246 | 246 | | A N A C T |
|---|
| 247 | 247 | | RELATING TO EDUCATION -- THE EDUCATION EQUITY AND PROPERTY TAX |
|---|
| 248 | 248 | | RELIEF ACT |
|---|
| 249 | 249 | | *** |
|---|
| 250 | 250 | | This act would amend the student success factor calculation of the state share ratio for 1 |
|---|
| 251 | 251 | | foundation aid by accounting for English language in determining the state's share of foundation 2 |
|---|
| 252 | 252 | | aid eligibility for each school district. This act would also mandate that each community fund its 3 |
|---|
| 253 | 253 | | school committee at the state share ratio by July 1, 2028. 4 |
|---|
| 254 | 254 | | This act would take effect on July 1, 2023 and be applicable for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. 5 |
|---|
| 255 | 255 | | ======== |
|---|
| 256 | 256 | | LC002614 |
|---|
| 257 | 257 | | ======== |
|---|