PRINTER'S NO. 1140
No. 994 Session of 2005
INTRODUCED BY STAIRS, ROEBUCK, BROWNE, CLYMER, HERMAN,
MACKERETH, T. STEVENSON, CURRY, GRUCELA, KIRKLAND, MUNDY,
SHANER, STURLA, SURRA, BELFANTI, CALTAGIRONE, CAPPELLI,
CRAHALLA, DALEY, J. EVANS, FAIRCHILD, FRANKEL, GEIST, GEORGE,
GINGRICH, GODSHALL, GOOD, GOODMAN, HENNESSEY, HESS, JAMES,
JOSEPHS, KOTIK, LEVDANSKY, MANN, McILHATTAN, S. MILLER,
NAILOR, PETRARCA, PRESTON, RAPP, RUBLEY, SAYLOR, SCAVELLO,
SCHRODER, SEMMEL, B. SMITH, STABACK, STERN, TANGRETTI,
E. Z. TAYLOR, TIGUE, WALKO AND YOUNGBLOOD, MARCH 16, 2005
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, MARCH 16, 2005
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), entitled "An
2 act relating to the public school system, including certain
3 provisions applicable as well to private and parochial
4 schools; amending, revising, consolidating and changing the
5 laws relating thereto," providing for an aid ratio guarantee.
6 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
7 hereby enacts as follows:
8 Section 1. The act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), known
9 as the Public School Code of 1949, is amended by adding a
10 section to read:
11 Section 2509.12. Aid Ratio Guarantee.--During the 2005-2006
12 school year and each school year thereafter, the Commonwealth
13 shall pay to each school district the greater of:
14 (a) the Commonwealth payments to the school district
15 pursuant to section 2509.5 during the prior school year;
16 (b) the amount due the school district under section 2509.5;
1 or
2 (c) the product of:
3 (1) the district's market value/personal income aid ratio
4 reported by the Department of Education for the current school
5 year or five thousand ten thousandths (.5000), whichever is
6 greater; and
7 (2) the district's expenditures on special education
8 programs in the school year three (3) years before the year for
9 which these payments are to be made. For the calculation under
10 this subsection, a district's expenditures on special education
11 programs shall be:
12 (i) For each school district belonging to an intermediate
13 unit, the boundary of which is not coterminous with that of the
14 district, the amount reported for function code 1200-000 on its
15 Annual Financial Report (PDE-2057) as certified by the
16 Department of Education on the date the Commonwealth's budget is
17 enacted for that school year. Function code 1200-000 shall
18 include all those activities dealing directly with the
19 interaction between teachers and students and related costs
20 which can be directly attributed to a program of special
21 education instruction, including the activities of aides or
22 classroom assistance of any type which assist in the
23 instructional process. Related costs include instructional
24 expenditures for salaries, contracted maintenance services,
25 travel expenses, equipment rental, supplies, books, maintenance
26 costs directly attributable to instructional equipment and other
27 expenses such as sabbatical leaves. Function code 1200-000 shall
28 exclude special education expenditures that relate to
29 administrative instructional support, pupil personnel, appraisal
30 services, placement services, psychological testing, speech
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1 pathology and audio services, supervision speech pathology and
2 audio services, social work services, computer assisted
3 instruction services, instruction and curriculum development
4 services, instruction staff development services, legal
5 services, office of principal services, medical services,
6 nursing services, transportation services and staff development.
7 (ii) For each school district belonging to an intermediate
8 unit, the boundary of which is coterminous with that of the
9 district, the amount reported by the intermediate unit as "Total
10 Available for Instruction" on its Final Expenditure Report--
11 Special Education Programs (PDE-2115) as certified by the
12 Department of Education on the date the Commonwealth's budget is
13 enacted for that school year.
14 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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