Rhode Island 2023 Regular Session

Rhode Island Senate Bill S0762 Compare Versions

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

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5	5	2023 -- S 0762
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7	7	LC002309
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9	9	S TATE OF RHODE IS LAND
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: Senators Goodwin, Gallo, and Pearson
18	18	Date Introduced: March 23, 2023
19	19	Referred To: Senate Education
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22	22	It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
23	23	SECTION 1. Section 16-7.2-5 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-7.2 entitled "The 1
24	24	Education Equity and Property Tax Relief Act" is hereby amended to read as follows: 2
25	25	16-7.2-5. Charter public schools, the William M. Davies, Jr. Career and Technical 3
26	26	High School, and the Metropolitan Regional Career and Technical Center. 4
27	27	(a) Charter public schools, as defined in chapter 77 of this title, the William M. Davies, Jr. 5
28	28	Career and Technical High School (Davies), and the Metropolitan Regional Career and Technical 6
29	29	Center (the Met Center) shall be funded pursuant to § 16-7.2-3. If the October 1 actual enrollment 7
30	30	data for any charter public school shows a ten percent (10%) or greater change from the prior year 8
31	31	enrollment that is used as the reference year average daily membership, the last six (6) monthly 9
32	32	payments to the charter public school will be adjusted to reflect actual enrollment. The state share 10
33	33	of the permanent foundation education aid shall be paid by the state directly to the charter public 11
34	34	schools, Davies, and the Met Center pursuant to § 16-7.2-9 and shall be calculated using the state-12
35	35	share ratio of the district of residence of the student as set forth in § 16-7.2-4. The department of 13
36	36	elementary and secondary education shall provide the general assembly with the calculation of the 14
37	37	state share of permanent foundation education aid for charter public schools delineated by school 15
38	38	district. 16
39	39	(b) The local share of education funding shall be paid to the charter public school, Davies, 17
40	40	and the Met Center by the district of residence of the student and shall be the local, per-pupil cost 18
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44	44	calculated by dividing the local appropriation to education from property taxes, net of debt service, 1
45	45	and capital projects, as defined in the uniform chart of accounts by the average daily membership 2
46	46	for each city and town, pursuant to § 16-7-22, for the reference year. 3
47	47	(c) In any fiscal year, no school district's total charter school expenses, defined as the sum 4
48	48	of tuitions and state education aid paid to charter schools for students from that district, shall exceed 5
49	49	nine percent (9%) of the district's adopted budget; however, if a school or school district is under 6
50	50	state control pursuant to § 16-7.1-5, the school district's total charter school expense may exceed 7
51	51	nine percent (9%) of the district's adopted budget; provided that, it shall not exceed twenty-three 8
52	52	percent (23%). If in FY 2024 and any subsequent fiscal year, any district's total charter school 9
53	53	expenses would exceed the nine percent (9%) or twenty-three percent (23%) caps prescribed in this 10
54	54	subsection, no enrollments shall be allowed from that district to charter schools in excess of the 11
55	55	total charter school percent caps in this subsection or the district’s prior fiscal year percentage, 12
56	56	whichever is greater. 13
57	57	(c)(d) Beginning in FY 2017, there shall be a reduction to the local per-pupil funding paid 14
58	58	by the district of residence to charter public schools, Davies, and the Met Center. This reduction 15
59	59	shall be equal to the greater (i) Of seven percent (7%) of the local, per-pupil funding of the district 16
60	60	of residence pursuant to subsection (b) or (ii) The per-pupil value of the district’s costs for non-17
61	61	public textbooks, transportation for non-public students, retiree health benefits, out-of-district 18
62	62	special-education tuition and transportation, services for students age eighteen (18) to twenty-one 19
63	63	(21) years old, pre-school screening and intervention, and career and technical education, tuition 20
64	64	and transportation costs, debt service and rental costs minus the average expenses incurred by 21
65	65	charter schools for those same categories of expenses as reported in the uniform chart of accounts 22
66	66	for the prior preceding fiscal year pursuant to § 16-7-16(11) and verified by the department of 23
67	67	elementary and secondary education. In the case where audited financials result in a change in the 24
68	68	calculation after the first tuition payment is made, the remaining payments shall be based on the 25
69	69	most recent audited data. For those districts whose greater reduction occurs under the calculation 26
70	70	of (ii), there shall be an additional reduction to payments to mayoral academies with teachers who 27
71	71	do not participate in the state teacher’s retirement system under chapter 8 of title 36 equal to the 28
72	72	per-pupil value of teacher retirement costs attributable to unfunded liability as calculated by the 29
73	73	state’s actuary for the prior preceding fiscal year. 30
74	74	(d)(e) Local district payments to charter public schools, Davies, and the Met Center for 31
75	75	each district’s students enrolled in these schools shall be made on a quarterly basis in July, October, 32
76	76	January, and April; however, the first local-district payment shall be made by August 15, instead 33
77	77	of July. Failure of the community to make the local-district payment for its student(s) enrolled in a 34
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81	81	charter public school, Davies, and/or the Met Center may result in the withholding of state 1
82	82	education aid pursuant to § 16-7-31. 2
83	83	(e)(f) Beginning in FY 2017, school districts with charter public school, Davies, and the 3
84	84	Met Center enrollment, that, combined, comprise five percent (5%) or more of the average daily 4
85	85	membership as defined in § 16-7-22, shall receive additional aid for a period of three (3) years. Aid 5
86	86	in FY 2017 shall be equal to the number of charter public school, open-enrollment schools, Davies, 6
87	87	or the Met Center students as of the reference year as defined in § 16-7-16 times a per-pupil amount 7
88	88	of one hundred seventy-five dollars ($175). Aid in FY 2018 shall be equal to the number of charter 8
89	89	public school, open-enrollment schools, Davies, or the Met Center students as of the reference year 9
90	90	as defined in § 16-7-16 times a per-pupil amount of one hundred dollars ($100). Aid in FY 2019 10
91	91	shall be equal to the number of charter public school, open-enrollment schools, Davies, or the Met 11
92	92	Center students as of the reference year as defined in § 16-7-16 times a per-pupil amount of fifty 12
93	93	dollars ($50.00). The additional aid shall be used to offset the adjusted fixed costs retained by the 13
94	94	districts of residence. 14
95	95	(f)(g) School districts with charter public school, Davies, and the Met Center enrollment, 15
96	96	that, combined, comprise five percent (5%) or more of the average daily membership as defined in 16
97	97	§ 16-7-22, shall receive additional aid intended to help offset the impact of new and expanding 17
98	98	charter schools. For FY 2022, aid shall be equal to the number of new students being served as 18
99	99	determined by the difference between the reference year as defined in § 16-7-16 and FY 2019 times 19
100	100	a per-pupil amount of five hundred dollars ($500). For FY 2023 and thereafter, aid shall be equal 20
101	101	to the number of new students being served as determined by the difference between the reference 21
102	102	year as defined in § 16-7-16 and the prior reference year times a per-pupil amount of five hundred 22
103	103	dollars ($500). The additional aid shall be used to offset the adjusted fixed costs retained by the 23
104	104	districts of residence. 24
105	105	SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on July 1, 2023. 25
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113	113	EXPLANATION
114	114	BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
115	115	OF
116	116	A N A C T
117	117	RELATING TO EDUCATION -- THE EDUCATION EQUITY AND PROPERTY TAX
118	118	RELIEF ACT
119	119	***
120	120	This act would provide limitations and prescribe caps on a district's total charter school 1
121	121	expenses. The act would provide that a school district's budget for charter schools is not to exceed 2
122	122	nine percent (9%) of the school district's budget unless the school district is under state control and 3
123	123	then the school district's budget for charter schools would not exceed twenty-three percent (23%). 4
124	124	This act would take effect on July 1, 2023. 5
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