Senate Bill No. 143

(By Senators Tomblin (Mr. President) and Sprouse
By Request of the Executive)
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[Introduced January 10, 2002; referred to the Committee

on Education; and then to the Committee on Finance.]

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A BILL to amend and reenact section ten, article nine-a, chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to the allowance for instructional programs; and penalizing a county that does not meet the instructional term requirement.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section ten, article nine-a, chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 9A. PUBLIC SCHOOL SUPPORT.

 §18-9A-10. Foundation allowance to improve instructional programs.
(a) For the school year beginning on the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-eight, and thereafter, the sum of the allocations shall be the amount appropriated by the Legislature for such purposes:
(1) One hundred fifty thousand dollars shall be allocated to
to each county;
(2) Distribution to the counties of the remainder of these funds shall be made proportional to the average of each county's average daily attendance for the preceding year and the county's second month net enrollment. Moneys allocated by provision of this section shall be used to improve instructional programs according to a plan for instructional improvement which the affected county board shall file with the state board by the first day of August of each year, to be approved by the state board by the first day of September of that year if such plan substantially complies with standards to be adopted by the state board: Provided, That notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary, moneys allocated by provision of this section may also be used in the implementation and maintenance of the uniform integrated regional computer information system; and
(3) Up to twenty-five percent of this allocation may be used to employ professional educators and/or service personnel in counties after all applicable provisions of sections four and five of this article have been fully utilized: Provided, That for the school year beginning on the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six, only, up to an additional twenty-five percent of this allocation may be used to employ classroom teachers, as defined in section one, article one, chapter eighteen-a of this code, and/or service personnel in counties after all applicable provisions of sections four and five of this article have been fully utilized: Provided, however, That service personnel employed with the additional twenty-five percent for the school year beginning on the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six, only, may not include directors, coordinators or supervisors.
Prior to the use of any funds from this section for personnel costs, the county board must receive authorization from the state superintendent of schools. The state superintendent shall require the district board to demonstrate: (1) The need for the allocation; (2) efficiency and fiscal responsibility in staffing; and (3) sharing of services with adjoining counties and the regional educational service agency for that county in the use of the total local district board budget. District boards shall make application for available funds for the next fiscal year by the first day of May of each year. On or before the first day of June, the state superintendent shall review all applications and notify applying district boards of the distribution of the allocation: Provided, That for the school year beginning on the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-three, only, the state superintendent shall review all applications and notify applying district boards of the distribution of the allocation on or before the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety- three. Such funds shall be distributed during the fiscal year as appropriate. The state superintendent shall require the county board to demonstrate the need for an allocation for personnel based upon the county's inability to meet the requirements of state law or state board policy: Provided, however, That the funds available for personnel under this section may not be used to increase the total number of professional noninstructional personnel in the central office beyond four. Such instructional improvement plan shall be made available for distribution to the public at the office of each affected county board.
(b) Commencing with the school year beginning on the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-three, an amount not less than the amount required to meet debt service requirements on any revenue bonds issued prior to the first day of January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four, and the debt service requirements on any revenue bonds issued for the purpose of refunding revenue bonds issued prior to the first day of January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four, shall be paid into the school building capital improvements fund created by section six, article nine-d of this chapter, and shall be used solely for the purposes of said article. The school building capital improvements fund shall not be utilized to meet the debt services requirement on any revenue bonds or revenue refunding bonds for which moneys contained within the school building debt service fund have been pledged for repayment pursuant to said section.
(c) Any project funded by the school building authority shall be in accordance with a comprehensive educational facility plan which must be approved by the state board and the school building authority.
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the total amount of funding which would otherwise be provided to each county pursuant to this section shall be reduced by two percent for each day a county is below the required one hundred eighty day instructional term required by section fifteen, article five of this chapter: Provided, That no county may lose more than a total of ten percent of the funds which would otherwise be provided under this section. The number of instructional days for the previous year shall be used in calculating the instructional term for the purposes of this subsection.


NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to reduce amount of the allowance to improve instructional programs for each county by two percent for each day a county is under the required 180 day instructional term. No county may lose more than a total of 10%.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.