S 755 Session 110 (1993-1994)
S 0755 General Bill, By Bryan
A Bill to amend Section 59-21-1030, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976,
relating to the level of financial effort per pupil required of each school
district for noncapital programs, so as to revise this required local
financial effort per pupil and the manner in which it is determined, to
provide penalties for noncompliance, and to further provide for waivers from
this requirement.
05/05/93 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-5
05/05/93 Senate Referred to Committee on Education SJ-5
A BILL
TO AMEND SECTION 59-21-1030, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH
CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE LEVEL OF FINANCIAL
EFFORT PER PUPIL REQUIRED OF EACH SCHOOL DISTRICT
FOR NONCAPITAL PROGRAMS, SO AS TO REVISE THIS
REQUIRED LOCAL FINANCIAL EFFORT PER PUPIL AND THE
MANNER IN WHICH IT IS DETERMINED, TO PROVIDE
PENALTIES FOR NONCOMPLIANCE, AND TO FURTHER
PROVIDE FOR WAIVERS FROM THIS REQUIREMENT.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 59-21-1030 of the 1976 Code as added by Act
612 of 1990, is amended to read:
"Section 59-21-1030. (A) Except as provided in this
section, school district boards of trustees or any other appropriate
governing body of a school district shall maintain at least the level of per
pupil financial effort established as provided in fiscal year 1983-84.
Beginning in 1985-86, local financial effort for noncapital programs
must be adjusted for an inflation factor estimated by the Division of
Research and Statistical Services.
(B) Thereafter, school district boards of trustees or other
governing bodies of school districts shall maintain at least the level of
financial effort per pupil for noncapital programs as in the prior year
adjusted for an inflation factor estimated by the Division of Research
and Statistical Services. The county auditor shall establish a millage
rate so that the level of financial effort per pupil for noncapital programs
adjusted for an inflation factor estimated by the Division of Research
and Statistical Services is maintained as a minimum effort. No school
district which has not complied with this section may receive funds from
the South Carolina Education Improvement Act of 1984 Fund. School
district boards of trustees may apply for a waiver to the State Board of
Education from the requirements of this section if:
(1) the district has experienced a loss in revenue because of
reduction in assessed valuation of property or has had a significant
increase in one hundred thirty-five average daily membership;
(2) the district has experienced insignificant growth in revenue
collections from the previous year;
(3) the district has demonstrated for one year that it has achieved
operating efficiencies and all education requirements are being met;
(4) a midyear revenue shortfall results in a reduction of funds
appropriated in accordance with Chapter 20 of Title 59 (The Education
Finance Act). A decline in the measured academic achievement of the
students must immediately cause the State Board of Education to void
all waivers provided under this section and make the district ineligible
to apply for any waivers under this section for two consecutive years.
If the decline in student achievement occurs, the district shall revert to
the minimum effort requirement, adjusted for the prior years inflation
factor. Waiver (4) does not apply to funds needed to meet the Minimum
Salary Schedule for teachers in South Carolina. A school district is
eligible for an annual renewal of the waiver provided the district meets
one of the above criteria and meets the minimum effort requirement of
the previous year and at least the minimum required effort of the
Education Finance Act.
(C) (1) Beginning in Fiscal Year 1994-95, the base formula
for use in calculating the level of local financial effort per pupil for
noncapital programs to be maintained as a minimum as required in this
section must be reconstituted to include definitive revenues, 135-day
average daily membership, and inflation adjustment data from standard
base formula years as prescribed in this section. The reconstituted base
formula shall remain constant for a five-year period, at the end of which,
and at five-year intervals thereafter, the base must be adjusted and again
reconstituted. As a standard rule, the definitive data to be used for each
reconstituted base must be comprised of the audited revenues and
definitive 135-day average daily membership from the second preceding
year of the year in which the base is being reconstituted to be adjusted
by the inflation factors established by the General Assembly in the
annual general appropriations acts for each of the two years succeeding
that second preceding year.
(2) The reconstituted base beginning in fiscal year 1994-95 which
shall remain constant in the formula for the five-year period 1994-95
through 1998-99 must be comprised of the audited revenues and
135-day average daily membership for fiscal year 1992-93 adjusted by
the inflation factors for fiscal year 1993-94 and fiscal year 1994-95 as
established by the General Assembly in the respective annual general
appropriations acts. The resulting per pupil amount multiplied by the
fiscal year 1994-95 135-day average daily membership constitutes the
school district's required minimum level of local financial effort for
noncapital programs to be maintained in fiscal year 1994-95.
(D) For each of the intervening years within each five-year period in
which the reconstituted base remains constant, school boards of trustees
or other governing bodies of school districts shall maintain a local
financial effort per pupil for noncapital programs which is equal to that
maintained in the immediate prior year adjusted by the inflation factor
of the immediate current year as established by the General Assembly
in the annual general appropriations act.
(E) In fiscal year 1999-2000, and at five fiscal year intervals
thereafter, the base formula must be adjusted and reconstituted, using the
audited revenues, definitive 135-day average daily membership and
inflation factor data of the standard rule base formula years as prescribed
under subsection (C)(1).
(F) For purposes of this section `noncapital programs' is defined as
those education programs funded by current, earned operating revenues
and `audited revenues' is defined as the sum of those specific general
fund revenue accounts as prescribed by regulation of the State Board of
Education and as reported in the district's annual audit report. Annually,
the State Department of Education shall notify each school district of the
minimum effort required to be maintained in accordance with this
section and shall monitor school district compliance with the provisions
of this section. Except as otherwise permitted, this section requires and
ensures a maintenance of a minimum local financial effort which at least
keeps pace with inflation. For the purpose of this section, the county
auditor shall determine a millage rate that shall generate revenue to the
extent that is needed in order for the district to meet its minimum
required local financial effort as prescribed herein.
(G) Any school district failing to comply with the requirements in
this section shall have its total Education Improvement Act allocation
reduced in proportion to the ratio that its local financial effort falls
below that which is required in this section.
(H) (1) In consideration of extenuating circumstances that may
affect the local school district's tax base or limit the district's ability to
maintain its minimum required local financial effort per pupil, local
boards of trustees or other governing bodies of school districts may
apply to the State Board of Education for a waiver requesting relief from
the requirements of this section for a given year, if:
(a) the school district can demonstrate that it has experienced
a loss in revenue because of reduction in assessed valuation of property;
(b) the school district can demonstrate that it has experienced
an increase in the 135-day average daily membership that is greater than
that experienced statewide;
(c) the school district can demonstrate that it has experienced
insignificant growth in earned revenues from the prior year which could
have resulted from assessed valuation of property that has not kept pace
with inflation factors, or from reduced tax collection rates. A school
district is ineligible for this waiver if there is a decrease in operational
millage from the previous year, unless the reduction was due to
reassessment;
(d) a state revenue shortfall results in a reduction of funds
appropriated in accordance with Chapter 20 of this title under the
Education Finance Act. This waiver does not apply to funds needed to
meet the minimum salary schedule for teachers in South Carolina;
(e) the school district can demonstrate that the local revenues
earned are in excess of the level to meet expenditures of the defined
minimum program and the operational fund balance of the general fund
has accumulated in excess of that which would be necessary to carry out
the operations or the district; or
(f) the school district can demonstrate that local revenues
previously budgeted to support a particular initiative that are locked into
the base formula used for determining the required local financial effort
are no longer needed for the initiative and that the related funds are not
being redirected to other initiatives.
(2) A school district board of trustees or other governing body of
a school district may reapply for a waiver to the State Board of
Education on an annual basis provided that any one of the waiver criteria
provided in this section can be demonstrated by the district, and the
school district can demonstrate that it meets at least the minimum
required effort of the Education Finance Act.
(3) For the purposes of this section, if a district's inability to
maintain its minimum required local effort is a direct result of any one
of the waiver criteria provided in this section, the superintendent of the
local school district shall inform the local board of trustees of such
conditions and shall ensure that the local board of trustees has full
knowledge of the waiver provisions and that at its discretion may apply
for a waiver as an alternative to effecting a tax mills
increase."
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 1994.
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