SF 2124 (LSB 5324XS (4) 83)

SENATE FILE 2124

BY  KETTERING

A BILL FOR

An Act providing a school tuition credit for certain pupils attending an accredited nonpublic school and including applicability provisions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 256.7, Code Supplement 2009, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  30.  Adopt rules relating to applications for a school tuition credit pursuant to section 257.11B, including application processing timelines, required information for submission by a parent or guardian, and penalties for noncompliance.
    Sec. 2.  Section 257.6, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code Supplement 2009, is amended by adding the following new subparagraph:
   NEW SUBPARAGRAPH.  (8)  Resident pupils receiving a school tuition credit pursuant to section 257.11B.
    Sec. 3.  NEW SECTION.  257.11B  SCHOOL TUITION CREDITS.
   1.  Pupils attending an accredited nonpublic school shall be eligible to receive a school tuition credit for attendance in the following grades according to the following schedule:
   a.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2011, pupils in kindergarten.
   b.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2012, pupils in kindergarten and grade one.
   c.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2013, pupils in kindergarten and grades one and two.
   d.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2014, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through three.
   e.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2015, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through four.
   f.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2016, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through five.
   g.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2017, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through six.
   h.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2018, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through seven.
   i.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2019, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through eight.
   j.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2020, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through nine.
   k.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2021, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through ten.
   l.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2022, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through eleven.
   m.  For the school budget year beginning July 1, 2023, and succeeding budget years, pupils in kindergarten and grades one through twelve.
   2.  a.  By January of the year preceding the school year for which the school tuition credit is requested, the parent or guardian of the pupil requesting to receive a school tuition credit shall submit an application to the department of education, on forms to be developed by the department, indicating that the parent or guardian intends to enroll the pupil in an accredited nonpublic school.
   b.  By March 1, the department of education shall notify the department of management of the number of pupils designated to receive school tuition credits.
   3.  a.  (1)  The department of management shall assign each designated pupil a school tuition credit in an amount equal to thirty-five percent of the regular program foundation base per pupil, as defined in section 257.1, subsection 2, paragraph “b”.
   (2)  The department of education, in consultation with the department of management, shall reduce the September payment to a local public school district otherwise payable pursuant to section 257.16 for the following school budget year by sixty-five percent of the amount determined in subparagraph (1) per designated pupil. The funds not dispersed to school districts due to the school tuition credit reduction shall be transferred to the general fund by the department of management.
   (3)  A public school district shall transfer twenty-five percent of the amount determined in subparagraph (1) per designated pupil directly to the applicable accredited nonpublic school and retain the remaining ten percent as the pupil’s district of residence.
   b.  (1)  Commencing in the school budget year beginning July 1, 2023, and succeeding budget years, if the average enrollment at an accredited nonpublic school equals seventeen percent of the combined enrollment of the local public school district and the accredited nonpublic school, the department of management shall assign each designated pupil a school tuition credit in an amount equal to forty-five percent of the regular program foundation base per pupil, as defined in section 257.1, subsection 2, paragraph “b”.
   (2)  The department of education, in consultation with the department of management, shall reduce the September payment to a local public school district otherwise payable pursuant to section 257.16 for the following school budget year by fifty-five percent of the amount determined in subparagraph (1) per designated pupil. The funds not dispersed to school districts due to the school tuition credit reduction shall be transferred to the general fund by the department of management.
   (3)  A public school district shall transfer thirty percent of the amount determined in subparagraph (1) per designated pupil directly to the applicable accredited nonpublic school and retain the remaining fifteen percent as the pupil’s district of residence.
   c.  The school tuition credit may also include any moneys received for the pupil as a result of the non-English-speaking weighting pursuant to section 280.4, subsection 3, for the previous school year multiplied by the state cost per pupil for the previous school year, and if the pupil is also an eligible pupil under section 261E.6, the tuition reimbursement amount as provided in section 261E.7.
   d.  Amounts payable as a school tuition credit may be paid in a lump sum or in installments to the accredited nonpublic school as determined by the department of education.
   4.  A pupil enrolled in an accredited nonpublic school who is receiving a school tuition credit shall be considered, for state school foundation aid purposes, to be attending school in the pupil’s district of residence. A parent or guardian may apply on an annual basis for a school tuition credit for each year that the pupil is enrolled in an accredited nonpublic school.
   5.  In the event that a pupil requires special education pursuant to chapter 256B, a school tuition credit may be utilized only in the event that the pupil is enrolled in an accredited nonpublic school that maintains a special education instructional program that is equipped to meet the pupil’s educational needs.
    Sec. 4.  APPLICABILITY.  This Act applies to school budget years beginning on or after July 1, 2011.
EXPLANATION
   This bill provides a school tuition credit for pupils attending accredited nonpublic schools.
   Pupils starting kindergarten in the school budget year commencing July 1, 2011, may receive a school tuition credit for attending an accredited nonpublic school. Each school budget year thereafter, another grade is made eligible for the school tuition credit, so that in the school budget year commencing July 1, 2023, kindergarten through grades 12 are included.
   The bill requires that a parent or guardian submit an application to the department of education (DE) by January of the preceding school year indicating that the parent or guardian intends to enroll the pupil in an accredited nonpublic school. By March 1, DE shall notify the department of management (DOM) of the number of pupils to receive school tuition credits.
   DOM shall assign each designated pupil a credit equal to 35 percent of the regular program foundation base per pupil. DE in consultation with DOM shall reduce the September payment to a local school district for the following school budget year by 65 percent of that amount per designated pupil. The funds not dispersed to school districts due to the school tuition credit shall be transferred to the general fund by DOM. A local school district of residence shall then transfer 25 percent of the credit per designated pupil directly to the applicable accredited nonpublic school district and retain the remaining 10 percent as the pupil’s district of residence.
   Beginning in the school budget year commencing July 1, 2023, and for succeeding budget years, if an accredited nonpublic school’s average enrollment equals 17 percent of the combined enrollment of the local public school district and the accredited nonpublic school, then DOM shall assign each designated pupil a credit equal to 45 percent of the regular program foundation base per pupil. DE in consultation with DOM shall reduce the September payment to a local school district for the following school budget year by 55 percent of that amount per designated pupil. The local school district of residence shall transfer 30 percent of the credit per designated pupil directly to the accredited nonpublic school and retain 15 percent as the pupil’s district of residence.
   The credit may include additional moneys received for the pupil for non-English-speaking programs or for tuition reimbursement under the postsecondary enrollment options program.
   DE shall determine whether the credit amounts are to be paid in a lump sum or in installments to the accredited nonpublic schools.
   A student attending an accredited nonpublic school shall be counted as attending school in the pupil’s district of residence for state school foundation purposes. A parent or guardian may reapply for the credit each year that the credit is available and that the pupil is enrolled in an accredited nonpublic school.
   The bill provides that if a pupil requires special education pursuant to Code chapter 256B, a school tuition credit may be used only in the event that the pupil is enrolled in an accredited nonpublic school which maintains a special education instructional program that is appropriate to meet the pupil’s educational needs.
   The state board of education is directed to adopt rules relating to the applications for the school tuition credit. Code section 257.6 is amended to reflect that pupils receiving a credit are counted as part of a local public school district’s actual enrollment.
   The bill applies to school budget years beginning on or after July 1, 2011.