Bill Text: AZ HB2616 | 2015 | Fifty-second Legislature 1st Regular | Introduced
Bill Title: Public school credit; equalization assistance
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-02-26 - House Committee of the Whole action: Retained on the Calendar [HB2616 Detail]
Download: Arizona-2015-HB2616-Introduced.html
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REFERENCE TITLE: public school credit; equalization assistance |
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State of Arizona House of Representatives Fifty-second Legislature First Regular Session 2015
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HB 2616 |
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Introduced by Representative Olson
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AN ACT
amending section 15-185, Arizona Revised Statutes; amending title 15, chapter 9, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 15-902; amending sections 15‑971 and 43‑1089.01, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to school finance.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 15-185, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
15-185. Charter schools; financing; civil penalty; transportation; definitions
A. Financial provisions for a charter school that is sponsored by a school district governing board are as follows:
1. The charter school shall be included in the district's budget and financial assistance calculations pursuant to paragraph 3 of this subsection and chapter 9 of this title, except for chapter 9, article 4 of this title. The charter of the charter school shall include a description of the methods of funding the charter school by the school district. The school district shall send a copy of the charter and application, including a description of how the school district plans to fund the school, to the state board of education before the start of the first fiscal year of operation of the charter school. The charter or application shall include an estimate of the student count for the charter school for its first fiscal year of operation. This estimate shall be computed pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 3 of this subsection.
2. A school district is not financially responsible for any charter school that is sponsored by the state board of education, the state board for charter schools, a university under the jurisdiction of the Arizona board of regents, a community college district or a group of community college districts.
3. A school district that sponsors a charter school may:
(a) Increase its student count as provided in subsection B, paragraph 2 of this section during the first year of the charter school's operation to include those charter school pupils who were not previously enrolled in the school district. A charter school sponsored by a school district governing board is eligible for the charter additional assistance prescribed in subsection B, paragraph 4 of this section. The district additional assistance allocation as provided in section 15‑961 for the school district sponsoring the charter school shall be increased by the amount of the charter additional assistance. The school district shall include the full amount of the charter additional assistance in the funding provided to the charter school.
(b) Compute separate weighted student counts pursuant to section 15‑943, paragraph 2, subdivision (a) for its noncharter school versus charter school pupils in order to maintain eligibility for small school district support level weights authorized in section 15‑943, paragraph 1 for its noncharter school pupils only. The portion of a district's student count that is attributable to charter school pupils is not eligible for small school district support level weights.
4. If a school district uses the provisions of paragraph 3 of this subsection, the school district is not eligible to include those pupils in its student count for the purposes of computing an increase in its revenue control limit and district support level as provided in section 15‑948.
5. A school district that sponsors a charter school is not eligible to include the charter school pupils in its student count for the purpose of computing an increase in its district additional assistance as provided in section 15‑961, subsection B, except that if the charter school was previously a school in the district, the district may include in its student count any charter school pupils who were enrolled in the school district in the prior year.
6. A school district that sponsors a charter school is not eligible to include the charter school pupils in its student count for the purpose of computing the revenue control limit which is used to determine the maximum budget increase as provided in chapter 4, article 4 of this title unless the charter school is located within the boundaries of the school district.
7. If a school district converts one or more of its district public schools to a charter school and receives assistance as prescribed in subsection B, paragraph 4 of this section, and subsequently converts the charter school back to a district public school, the school district shall repay the state the total charter additional assistance received for the charter school for all years that the charter school was in operation. The repayment shall be in one lump sum and shall be reduced from the school district's current year equalization assistance. The school district's general budget limit shall be reduced by the same lump sum amount in the current year.
8. The charter school shall be eligible for and shall calculate extracurricular activities and classroom learning priorities assistance pursuant to section 15‑902.
B. Financial provisions for a charter school that is sponsored by the state board of education, the state board for charter schools, a university, a community college district or a group of community college districts are as follows:
1. The charter school shall calculate a base support level as prescribed in section 15‑943, except that section 15‑941 does not apply to these charter schools.
2. Notwithstanding paragraph 1 of this subsection, the student count shall be determined initially using an estimated student count based on actual registration of pupils before the beginning of the school year. Notwithstanding section 15‑1042, subsection F, student level data submitted to the department may be used to determine estimated student counts. After the first forty days, one hundred days or two hundred days in session, as applicable, the charter school shall revise the student count to be equal to the actual average daily membership, as defined in section 15‑901, of the charter school. Before the fortieth day, one hundredth day or two hundredth day in session, as applicable, the state board of education, the state board for charter schools, the sponsoring university, the sponsoring community college district or the sponsoring group of community college districts may require a charter school to report periodically regarding pupil enrollment and attendance, and the department of education may revise its computation of equalization assistance based on the report. A charter school shall revise its student count, base support level and charter additional assistance before May 15. A charter school that overestimated its student count shall revise its budget before May 15. A charter school that underestimated its student count may revise its budget before May 15.
3. A charter school may utilize section 15‑855 for the purposes of this section. The charter school and the department of education shall prescribe procedures for determining average daily membership.
4. Equalization assistance for the charter school shall be determined by adding the amount of the base support level and charter additional assistance. The amount of the charter additional assistance is one thousand seven hundred seven dollars seventy‑seven cents per student count in preschool programs for children with disabilities, kindergarten programs and grades one through eight and one thousand nine hundred ninety dollars thirty‑eight cents per student count in grades nine through twelve.
5. The state board of education shall apportion state aid from the appropriations made for such purposes to the state treasurer for disbursement to the charter schools in each county in an amount as determined by this paragraph. The apportionments shall be made as prescribed in section 15‑973, subsection B.
6. The charter school shall not charge tuition for pupils who reside in this state, levy taxes or issue bonds. A charter school may admit pupils who are not residents of this state and shall charge tuition for those pupils in the same manner prescribed in section 15‑823.
7. Not later than noon on the day preceding each apportionment date established by paragraph 5 of this subsection, the superintendent of public instruction shall furnish to the state treasurer an abstract of the apportionment and shall certify the apportionment to the department of administration, which shall draw its warrant in favor of the charter schools for the amount apportioned.
8. The charter school shall be eligible for and shall calculate extracurricular activities and classroom learning priorities assistance pursuant to section 15‑902.
C. If a pupil is enrolled in both a charter school and a public school that is not a charter school, the sum of the daily membership, which includes enrollment as prescribed in section 15‑901, subsection A, paragraph 1, subdivisions (a) and (b) and daily attendance as prescribed in section 15‑901, subsection A, paragraph 5, for that pupil in the school district and the charter school shall not exceed 1.0. If a pupil is enrolled in both a charter school and a public school that is not a charter school, the department of education shall direct the average daily membership to the school with the most recent enrollment date. On validation of actual enrollment in both a charter school and a public school that is not a charter school and if the sum of the daily membership or daily attendance for that pupil is greater than 1.0, the sum shall be reduced to 1.0 and shall be apportioned between the public school and the charter school based on the percentage of total time that the pupil is enrolled or in attendance in the public school and the charter school. The uniform system of financial records shall include guidelines for the apportionment of the pupil enrollment and attendance as provided in this section.
D. Charter schools are allowed to accept grants and gifts to supplement their state funding, but it is not the intent of the charter school law to require taxpayers to pay twice to educate the same pupils. The base support level for a charter school or for a school district sponsoring a charter school shall be reduced by an amount equal to the total amount of monies received by a charter school from a federal or state agency if the federal or state monies are intended for the basic maintenance and operations of the school. The superintendent of public instruction shall estimate the amount of the reduction for the budget year and shall revise the reduction to reflect the actual amount before May 15 of the current year. If the reduction results in a negative amount, the negative amount shall be used in computing all budget limits and equalization assistance, except that:
1. Equalization assistance shall not be less than zero.
2. For a charter school sponsored by the state board of education, the state board for charter schools, a university, a community college district or a group of community college districts, the total of the base support level and the charter additional assistance shall not be less than zero.
3. For a charter school sponsored by a school district, the base support level for the school district shall not be reduced by more than the amount that the charter school increased the district's base support level and district additional assistance allocation.
E. If a charter school was a district public school in the prior year and is now being operated for or by the same school district and sponsored by the state board of education, the state board for charter schools, a university, a community college district, a group of community college districts or a school district governing board, the reduction in subsection D of this section applies. The reduction to the base support level of the charter school or the sponsoring district of the charter school shall equal the sum of the base support level and the charter additional assistance received in the current year for those pupils who were enrolled in the traditional public school in the prior year and are now enrolled in the charter school in the current year.
F. Equalization assistance for charter schools shall be provided as a single amount based on average daily membership without categorical distinctions between maintenance and operations or capital.
G. At the request of a charter school, the county school superintendent of the county where the charter school is located may provide the same educational services to the charter school as prescribed in section 15‑308, subsection A. The county school superintendent may charge a fee to recover costs for providing educational services to charter schools.
H. If the sponsor of the charter school determines at a public meeting that the charter school is not in compliance with federal law, with the laws of this state or with its charter, the sponsor of a charter school may submit a request to the department of education to withhold up to ten per cent percent of the monthly apportionment of state aid that would otherwise be due the charter school. The department of education shall adjust the charter school's apportionment accordingly. The sponsor shall provide written notice to the charter school at least seventy‑two hours before the meeting and shall allow the charter school to respond to the allegations of noncompliance at the meeting before the sponsor makes a final determination to notify the department of education of noncompliance. The charter school shall submit a corrective action plan to the sponsor on a date specified by the sponsor at the meeting. The corrective action plan shall be designed to correct deficiencies at the charter school and to ensure that the charter school promptly returns to compliance. When the sponsor determines that the charter school is in compliance, the department of education shall restore the full amount of state aid payments to the charter school.
I. In addition to the withholding of state aid payments pursuant to subsection H of this section, the sponsor of a charter school may impose a civil penalty of one thousand dollars per occurrence if a charter school fails to comply with the fingerprinting requirements prescribed in section 15‑183, subsection C or section 15‑512. The sponsor of a charter school shall not impose a civil penalty if it is the first time that a charter school is out of compliance with the fingerprinting requirements and if the charter school provides proof within forty-eight hours of written notification that an application for the appropriate fingerprint check has been received by the department of public safety. The sponsor of the charter school shall obtain proof that the charter school has been notified, and the notification shall identify the date of the deadline and shall be signed by both parties. The sponsor of a charter school shall automatically impose a civil penalty of one thousand dollars per occurrence if the sponsor determines that the charter school subsequently violates the fingerprinting requirements. Civil penalties pursuant to this subsection shall be assessed by requesting the department of education to reduce the amount of state aid that the charter school would otherwise receive by an amount equal to the civil penalty. The amount of state aid withheld shall revert to the state general fund at the end of the fiscal year.
J. A charter school may receive and spend monies distributed by the department of education pursuant to section 42‑5029, subsection E and section 37‑521, subsection B.
K. If a school district transports or contracts to transport pupils to the Arizona state schools for the deaf and the blind during any fiscal year, the school district may transport or contract with a charter school to transport sensory impaired pupils during that same fiscal year to a charter school if requested by the parent of the pupil and if the distance from the pupil's place of actual residence within the school district to the charter school is less than the distance from the pupil's place of actual residence within the school district to the campus of the Arizona state schools for the deaf and the blind.
L. Notwithstanding any other law, a university under the jurisdiction of the Arizona board of regents, a community college district or a group of community college districts shall not include any student in the student count of the university, community college district or group of community college districts for state funding purposes if that student is enrolled in and attending a charter school sponsored by the university, community college district or group of community college districts.
M. The governing body of a charter school shall transmit a copy of its proposed budget or the summary of the proposed budget and a notice of the public hearing to the department of education for posting on the department of education's website no later than ten days before the hearing and meeting. If the charter school maintains a website, the charter school governing body shall post on its website a copy of its proposed budget or the summary of the proposed budget and a notice of the public hearing.
N. The governing body of a charter school shall collaborate with the private organization that is approved by the state board of education pursuant to section 15‑792.02 to provide approved board examination systems for the charter school.
O. If permitted by federal law, a charter school may opt out of federal grant opportunities if the charter holder or the appropriate governing body of the charter school determines that the federal requirements impose unduly burdensome reporting requirements.
P. For the purposes of this section:
1. "Monies intended for the basic maintenance and operations of the school" means monies intended to provide support for the educational program of the school, except that it does not include supplemental assistance for a specific purpose or title VIII of the elementary and secondary education act of 1965 monies. The auditor general shall determine which federal or state monies meet the definition in this paragraph.
2. "Operated for or by the same school district" means the charter school is either governed by the same district governing board or operated by the district in the same manner as other traditional schools in the district or is operated by an independent party that has a contract with the school district. The auditor general and the department of education shall determine which charter schools meet the definition in this subsection.
Sec. 2. Title 15, chapter 9, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 15-902, to read:
15-902. Extracurricular activities and classroom learning priorities assistance
The extracurricular activities and classroom learning priorities assistance for a school district or charter school is forty-seven dollars thirty-eight cents multiplied by the student count of the school district or charter school. The assistance prescribed in this section shall be used for extracurricular activities and classroom learning priorities.
Sec. 3. Section 15-971, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
15-971. Determination of equalization assistance payments from county and state funds for school districts
A. Equalization assistance for education is computed by determining the total of the following:
1. The lesser of a school district's revenue control limit or district support level as determined in section 15‑947 or 15‑951.
2. District additional assistance of a school district as determined in section 15‑951 or 15‑961.
3. Extracurricular activities and classroom learning priorities assistance of a school district as determined pursuant to section 15-902.
B. From the total of the amounts determined in subsection A of this section subtract:
1. The amount that would be produced by levying the applicable qualifying tax rate determined pursuant to section 41‑1276 for a high school district or a common school district within a high school district that does not offer instruction in high school subjects as provided in section 15‑447.
2. The amount that would be produced by levying the applicable qualifying tax rate determined pursuant to section 41‑1276 for a unified school district, a common school district not within a high school district or a common school district within a high school district that offers instruction in high school subjects as provided in section 15‑447. The qualifying tax rate shall be applied in the following manner:
(a) For the purposes of the amount determined in subsection A, paragraph 1 of this section:
(i) Determine separately the percentage that the weighted student count in preschool programs for children with disabilities, kindergarten programs and grades one through eight and the weighted student count in grades nine through twelve is to the weighted student count determined in subtotal A as provided in section 15‑943, paragraph 2, subdivision (a).
(ii) Apply the percentages determined in item (i) of this subdivision to the amount determined in subsection A, paragraph 1 of this section.
(b) For the purposes of the amounts determined in subsection A, paragraph 2 of this section, determine separately the amount of the district additional assistance attributable to the student count in preschool programs for children with disabilities, kindergarten programs and grades one through eight and grades nine through twelve.
(c) From the amounts determined in subdivisions (a) and (b) of this paragraph, subtract the levy that would be produced by the current qualifying tax rate for a high school district or a common school district within a high school district that does not offer instruction in high school subjects as provided in section 15‑447. If the qualifying tax rate generates a levy that is in excess of the total determined in subsection A of this section, the school district shall not be eligible for equalization assistance. For the purposes of this subsection, "assessed valuation" includes the values used to determine voluntary contributions collected pursuant to title 9, chapter 4, article 3 and title 48, chapter 1, article 8 and the assessed value of all property subject to the government property lease excise tax pursuant to title 42, chapter 6, article 5.
3. The amount that would be produced by levying a qualifying tax rate in a joint technical education district, which shall be five cents per one hundred dollars assessed valuation unless the legislature sets a lower rate by law.
4. The amount received by the school district or charter school in the most recently reported previous calendar year from contributions pursuant to section 43‑1089.01.
C. County aid for equalization assistance for education shall be computed as follows:
1. Determine the total equalization assistance for all school districts in the county as provided in subsections A and B of this section.
2. Determine the total amount of state equalization assistance collected for all school districts in the county as provided in section 15‑994.
3. Divide the amount determined in paragraph 2 of this subsection by the amount determined in paragraph 1 of this subsection.
4. Multiply the amount determined in subsections A and B of this section by the quotient determined in paragraph 3 of this subsection for each school district.
5. The amount determined in paragraph 4 of this subsection shall be the county aid for equalization assistance for education for a school district.
D. State aid for equalization assistance for education for a school district shall be computed as follows:
1. Determine the equalization assistance for education for a school district as provided in subsections A and B of this section.
2. For each county, determine the levy that would be produced by the state equalization assistance property tax rate prescribed in section 15‑994, subsection A.
3. Prorate the amount determined in paragraph 2 of this subsection to each school district in the county as prescribed by subsection C of this section.
4. Subtract the amount determined in paragraph 3 of this subsection from the amount determined in paragraph 1 of this subsection.
E. Equalization assistance for education shall be paid from appropriations for that purpose to the school districts as provided in section 15‑973.
F. A school district shall report expenditures on approved career and technical education and vocational education programs in the annual financial report according to uniform guidelines prescribed by the uniform system of financial records and in order to facilitate compliance with sections 15‑255 and 15‑904.
G. The additional weight for state aid purposes given to special education as provided in section 15‑943 shall be given to school districts only if special education programs comply with chapter 7, article 4 of this title and the conditions and standards prescribed by the superintendent of public instruction pursuant to rules of the state board of education for pupil identification and placement pursuant to sections 15‑766 and 15‑767.
H. In addition to general fund appropriations, all amounts received pursuant to section 37‑521, subsection B, paragraph 3 and section 42‑5029, subsection E, paragraph 5 and from any other source for the purposes of this section are appropriated for state aid to schools as provided in this section.
I. The total amount of state monies that may be spent in any fiscal year for state equalization assistance shall not exceed the amount appropriated or authorized by section 35‑173 for that purpose. This section shall not be construed to impose a duty on an officer, agent or employee of this state to discharge a responsibility or to create any right in a person or group if the discharge or right would require an expenditure of state monies in excess of the expenditure authorized by legislative appropriation for that specific purpose.
Sec. 4. Section 43-1089.01, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
43-1089.01. Tax credit; donations to public schools; definition
A. A credit is allowed against the taxes imposed by this title for the amount of any fees or cash contributions by a taxpayer or on the taxpayer's behalf pursuant to section 43‑401, subsection G during the taxable year to a public school located in this state for the support of extracurricular activities or character education programs of the public school, but not exceeding:
1. Two hundred dollars for a single individual or a head of household.
2. Three hundred dollars in taxable year 2005 for a married couple filing a joint return.
3. Four hundred dollars in taxable year 2006 and any subsequent taxable year for a married couple filing a joint return.
B. A husband and wife who file separate returns for a taxable year in which they could have filed a joint return may each claim only one‑half of the tax credit that would have been allowed for a joint return.
C. The credit allowed by this section is in lieu of any deduction pursuant to section 170 of the internal revenue code and taken for state tax purposes.
D. If the allowable tax credit exceeds the taxes otherwise due under this title on the claimant's income, or if there are no taxes due under this title, the taxpayer may carry the amount of the claim not used to offset the taxes under this title forward for not more than five consecutive taxable years' income tax liability.
E. The site council of the public school that receives contributions that are not designated for a specific purpose shall determine how the contributions are used at the school site. If a charter school does not have a site council, the principal, director or chief administrator of the charter school shall determine how the contributions that are not designated for a specific purpose are used at the school site. If at the end of a fiscal year a public school has unspent contributions that were previously designated for a specific purpose or program and that purpose or program has been discontinued or has not been used for two consecutive fiscal years, these contributions shall be considered undesignated in the following fiscal year for the purposes of this subsection.
F. A public school that receives fees or a cash contribution pursuant to subsection A of this section shall report to the department, in a form prescribed by the department, by February 28 of each year the following information:
1. The total number of fee and cash contribution payments received during the previous calendar year.
2. The total dollar amount of fees and contributions received during the previous calendar year.
3. The total dollar amount of fees and contributions spent by the school during the previous calendar year, categorized by specific extracurricular activity or character education program.
E. On or before September 1 of each year, a public school that receives contributions for the purposes of the credit pursuant to this section shall report to the state board of education for the purposes of section 15-971 and to the department of revenue the total dollar amount of the contributions the school received during the preceding fiscal year.
G. F. For the purposes of this sections, :
1. "Character education programs" means a program described in section 15‑719.
2. "Extracurricular activities" means school sponsored activities that require enrolled students to pay a fee in order to participate, including fees for:
(a) Band uniforms.
(b) Equipment or uniforms for varsity athletic activities.
(c) Scientific laboratory materials.
(d) In‑state or out‑of‑state trips that are solely for competitive events. Extracurricular activities do not include any senior trips or events that are recreational, amusement or tourist activities.
3. "public school" means a school that is part of a school district, a joint technical education district or a charter school.
