CHAPTER 301
HB 76 – FINAL VERSION
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01Feb2006… 0401h
05/04/06 2126s
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24May2006… 2397eba
2006 SESSION
04/01
HOUSE BILL 76
AN ACT relative to distribution of state aid to charter schools and relative to funding for charter schools.
SPONSORS: Rep. Hunt, Ches. 7; Rep. Alger, Graf 6; Rep. Snyder, Straf 2; Rep. P. Sullivan, Hills 10
This bill:
I. Requires the state to pay education aid directly to a charter school approved by the state board of education, and requires any member of a charter school board of trustees who also serves as an employee, agent, or board member of any for-profit entity with whom the charter school contracts for goods or services to make public disclosure of such fact and to recuse oneself from any business the charter school may have with the for-profit entity.
II. Provides that the amount necessary to fund charter school tuition payments shall be from the education trust fund.
III. Provides seed grants from the education trust fund for charter schools on a first-come, first-served basis, and amends the state operating budget for the 2007 fiscal year to provide funds for such grants.
IV. Requires the commissioner of the department of education to apply for all federal funding available to charter schools under the No Child Left Behind Act, Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, or other federal source of funds, and to use such funds to supplement state grants to charter schools, in addition to other uses.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
01Feb2006… 0024h
01Feb2006… 0401h
05/04/06 2126s
24May2006… 2359cofc
24May2006… 2397eba
05-0102
04/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Six
AN ACT relative to distribution of state aid to charter schools and relative to funding for charter schools.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
301:1 Charter and Open Enrollment Schools; Funding. Amend RSA 194-B:11, I to read as follows:
I. There shall be no tuition charge for any pupil attending an open enrollment or charter conversion school located in that pupil’s resident district. Funding limitations in this chapter shall not be applicable to charter conversion or open enrollment schools located in a pupil’s resident district. For any other charter or open enrollment school authorized by the school district, the pupil’s resident district shall pay to such school an amount equal to not less than 80 percent of that district’s average cost per pupil as determined by the department of education using the most recent available data as reported by the district to the department. For any charter school authorized by the state board of education pursuant to RSA 194-B:3-a, [the pupil’s resident district shall pay tuition beginning July 1, 2005 and every fiscal year thereafter,] the state shall pay tuition directly to the charter school for each pupil who is a resident of this state in attendance at such charter school [in an amount per pupil determined] as follows:
(a) For the fiscal year beginning [July 1, 2005, $3,500] July 1, 2006, $3,598 annual tuition.
(b) For every fiscal year thereafter, the department of education shall determine the tuition rate by adjusting for the average annual percentage rate of inflation based on the northeast region consumer price index for all urban consumers as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor. The average shall be based on the 4 calendar years ending 18 months before the beginning of the fiscal year for which the tuition rate is to be determined.
(c) The commissioner of the department of education shall calculate and distribute charter school tuition payments as set forth herein. The first payment shall be 30 percent of the per pupil amount multiplied by the number of eligible pupils present on the first day of the current school year. Such payment shall be made no later than 15 days after the department of education receives the attendance report. The December 1 payment shall be 30 percent of the per pupil amount multiplied by the membership on November 1, and the March 1 payment shall be 30 percent of the per pupil amount multiplied by the membership on February 1. To calculate the final payment, the commissioner of the department of education shall multiply the per pupil amount by the average daily membership in attendance for the full school year, and subtract the total amount of the first 3 payments made. The remaining balance shall be the final payment. Eligible charter schools shall report membership in accordance with RSA 189:1-d. In this subparagraph, “membership” shall be as defined in RSA 189:1-d, II. Tuition amounts shall be prorated on a per diem basis for pupils attending a school for less than a full school year. [To the extent permitted by law, tuition payments shall coincide with the distribution of equitable education grants under RSA 198:42 or on such other terms as are mutually acceptable.]
(d) The source of funds for payments under this section shall be moneys from the education trust fund established in RSA 198:39.
301:2 State Aid; Education Trust Fund. Amend the introductory paragraph of RSA 198:39, I to read as follows:
I. The state treasurer shall establish an education trust fund in the treasury. Moneys in such fund shall not be used for any purpose other than to distribute adequate education grants to municipalities’ school districts and to approved charter schools pursuant to RSA 198:42, and to provide low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief under RSA 198:56-198:61. The state treasurer shall deposit into this fund immediately upon receipt:
301:3 New Paragraph; Charter and Open Enrollment Schools; Board of Trustees. Amend RSA 194-B:5 by inserting after paragraph VI the following new paragraph:
VII. Any member of a charter school board of trustees who also serves as an employee, agent, or board member of any for-profit entity with whom the charter school contracts for goods or services shall make public disclosure of such fact and shall recuse oneself from any business the charter school may have with the for-profit entity. Any contract executed in violation of this paragraph shall be voidable at the discretion of the commissioner of the department of education. A member of a charter school board of trustees who executes a contract in violation of this paragraph may be held personally liable to the charter school for any damages caused by such contract.
301:4 Repeal. RSA 194-B:11, IX, relative to the issuance of reimbursement anticipation notes to charter schools, is repealed.
301:5 New Paragraph; School Money; Distribution Schedule of Equitable Education Grants. Amend RSA 198:42 by inserting after paragraph III the following new paragraph:
IV. For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2006, and every fiscal year thereafter, the amount necessary to fund charter school tuition payments under RSA 194-B:11, I is hereby appropriated to the department from the education trust fund established under RSA 198:39. The education trust fund shall be used to satisfy the state’s obligation under this paragraph. The payment shall be issued regardless of the balance of funds available in the education trust fund.
301:6 Charter Schools; Seed Grants; Use of Federal Funds.
I.(a) A charter school approved pursuant to RSA 194-B:3-a, and which receives no funds from the school district in which the charter school is located, shall, upon application to the commissioner of the department of education (commissioner), receive a one-time grant of up to $100,000 to be used only for seed costs related to the initial opening of the charter school including acquisition of classroom space, rent, cost of initial supplies, teacher salary and training, staffing costs, and utilities. Such funds shall not be used for tuition expenses. These grants shall be a charge against the education trust fund established in RSA 198:39.
(b) The commissioner shall disburse the grants no later than 30 days from the date of the application. The commissioner shall develop a form suitable for the requirements of this section. A total of $400,000 in state moneys shall be available for distribution as grants. This amount shall be used exclusively as provided in this section and shall not be transferred or diverted to any other purpose.
(c) In the event the amount available under this section is insufficient to disburse at least $100,000 to each charter school entitled to a grant, such amount shall be prorated among the charter schools entitled to receive a grant.
II. The commissioner shall apply for any federal funds available to charter schools pursuant to the No Child Left Behind Act, or any other federal funding source, and shall first expend any such funds received to ensure that a charter school entitled to a grant under this section receives a grant of at least $100,000.
301:7 New Paragraph; Charter and Open Enrollment Schools; Federal Funding. Amend RSA 194-B:11 by inserting after paragraph IV the following new paragraph:
IV-a. The commissioner of the department of education shall apply for all federal funding available to charter schools under the No Child Left Behind Act, Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, or other federal source of funds. The commissioner shall expend any such funds received in a manner acceptable to the funding source.
301:8 Department of Education; Curriculum and Assessment. Amend PAU 06, 03, 02, 05, 01, for the 2007 fiscal year by inserting after class line 95 the following new class line:
96 Charter School Seed Grants * 400,000
* THESE FUNDS SHALL NOT BE TRANSFERRED OR EXPENDED FOR ANY OTHER PURPOSE AND SHALL NOT LAPSE.
301:9 Department of Education; Curriculum and Assessment. Amend the 2007 fiscal year totals and source of funds for PAU 06, 03, 02, 05, 01 as follows:
Strike out:
FISCAL YEAR 2007
TOTAL 2,498,373
ESTIMATED SOURCE OF FUNDS FOR
CURRICULUM AND ASSESSMENT
GENERAL FUND 2,498,373
TOTAL 2,498,373
Insert in place thereof:
FISCAL YEAR 2007
TOTAL 2,898,373
ESTIMATED SOURCE OF FUNDS FOR
CURRICULUM AND ASSESSMENT
GENERAL FUND 2,498,373
EDUCATION REVENUE 400,000
TOTAL 2,898,373
301:10 Effective Date.
I. Sections 8-9 of this act shall take effect July 1, 2006.
II. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
Approved: June 19, 2006
Effective: I. Sections 8-9 shall take effect July 1, 2006.
II. Remainder shall take effect June 19, 2006