2024 -- S 2346

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LC004747

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2024

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- THE EDUCATION EQUITY AND PROPERTY TAX

RELIEF ACT

     Introduced By: Senators Cano, Acosta, Lawson, Pearson, Quezada, Bell, and Valverde

     Date Introduced: February 12, 2024

     Referred To: Senate Finance

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 16-7.2-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-7.2 entitled "The

Education Equity and Property Tax Relief Act" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     16-7.2-6. Categorical programs, state funded expenses.

     In addition to the foundation education aid provided pursuant to § 16-7.2-3, the permanent

foundation education-aid program shall provide direct state funding for:

     (a) Excess costs associated with special education students. Excess costs are defined when

an individual special education student’s cost shall be deemed to be “extraordinary.” Extraordinary

costs are those educational costs that exceed the state-approved threshold based on an amount

above four times the core foundation amount (total of core-instruction amount plus student success

amount). The department of elementary and secondary education ("the department") shall prorate

the funds available for distribution among those eligible school districts if the total approved costs

for which school districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount of funding appropriated

in any fiscal year; and the department of elementary and secondary education shall also collect data

on those educational costs that exceed the state-approved threshold based on an amount above two

(2), three (3), and five (5) times the core-foundation amount;

     (b) Career and technical education costs to help meet initial investment requirements

needed to transform existing, or create new, comprehensive, career and technical education

programs and career pathways in critical and emerging industries and to help offset the higher-

than-average costs associated with facilities, equipment maintenance and repair, and supplies

necessary for maintaining the quality of highly specialized programs that are a priority for the state.

The department shall develop criteria for the purpose of allocating any and all career and technical

education funds as may be determined by the general assembly on an annual basis. The department

of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among

those eligible school districts if the total approved costs for which school districts are seeking

reimbursement exceed the amount of funding available in any fiscal year;

     (c) Programs to increase access to voluntary, free, high-quality pre-kindergarten programs.

The department shall recommend criteria for the purpose of allocating any and all early childhood

program funds as may be determined by the general assembly;

     (d) Central Falls, Davies, and the Met Center Stabilization Fund is established to ensure

that appropriate funding is available to support their students. Additional support for Central Falls

is needed due to concerns regarding the city’s capacity to meet the local share of education costs.

This fund requires that education aid calculated pursuant to § 16-7.2-3 and funding for costs outside

the permanent foundation education-aid formula, including, but not limited to, transportation,

facility maintenance, and retiree health benefits shall be shared between the state and the city of

Central Falls. The fund shall be annually reviewed to determine the amount of the state and city

appropriation. The state’s share of this fund may be supported through a reallocation of current

state appropriations to the Central Falls school district. At the end of the transition period defined

in § 16-7.2-7, the municipality will continue its contribution pursuant to § 16-7-24. Additional

support for the Davies and the Met Center is needed due to the costs associated with running a

stand-alone high school offering both academic and career and technical coursework. The

department shall recommend criteria for the purpose of allocating any and all stabilization funds as

may be determined by the general assembly;

     (e) Excess costs associated with transporting students to out-of-district non-public schools.

This fund will provide state funding for the costs associated with transporting students to out-of-

district non-public schools, pursuant to chapter 21.1 of this title. The state will assume the costs of

non-public out-of-district transportation for those districts participating in the statewide system.

The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available for

distribution among those eligible school districts if the total approved costs for which school

districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount of funding available in any fiscal year;

     (f) Excess costs associated with transporting students within regional school districts. This

fund will provide direct state funding for the excess costs associated with transporting students

within regional school districts, established pursuant to chapter 3 of this title. This fund requires

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that the state and regional school district share equally the student transportation costs net any

federal sources of revenue for these expenditures. The department of elementary and secondary

education shall prorate the funds available for distribution among those eligible school districts if

the total approved costs for which school districts are seeking reimbursement exceed the amount

of funding available in any fiscal year;

     (g) Public school districts that are regionalized shall be eligible for a regionalization bonus

as set forth below:

     (1) As used herein, the term “regionalized” shall be deemed to refer to a regional school

district established under the provisions of chapter 3 of this title, including the Chariho Regional

School district;

     (2) For those districts that are regionalized as of July 1, 2010, the regionalization bonus

shall commence in FY 2012. For those districts that regionalize after July 1, 2010, the

regionalization bonus shall commence in the first fiscal year following the establishment of a

regionalized school district as set forth in chapter 3 of this title, including the Chariho Regional

School District;

     (3) The regionalization bonus in the first fiscal year shall be two percent (2.0%) of the

state’s share of the foundation education aid for the regionalized district as calculated pursuant to

§§ 16-7.2-3 and 16-7.2-4 in that fiscal year;

     (4) The regionalization bonus in the second fiscal year shall be one percent (1.0%) of the

state’s share of the foundation education aid for the regionalized district as calculated pursuant to

§§ 16-7.2-3 and 16-7.2-4 in that fiscal year;

     (5) The regionalization bonus shall cease in the third fiscal year;

     (6) The regionalization bonus for the Chariho regional school district shall be applied to

the state share of the permanent foundation education aid for the member towns; and

     (7) The department of elementary and secondary education shall prorate the funds available

for distribution among those eligible regionalized school districts if the total, approved costs for

which regionalized school districts are seeking a regionalization bonus exceed the amount of

funding appropriated in any fiscal year;

     (h) Additional state support for English learners (EL). The amount to support EL students

shall be determined by multiplying an EL factor of fifteen percent (15%) by the core-instruction

per-pupil amount defined in § 16-7.2-3(a)(1) and applying that amount of additional state support

to EL students identified using widely adopted, independent standards and assessments identified

by the commissioner. All categorical funds distributed pursuant to this subsection must be used to

provide high-quality, research-based services to EL students and managed in accordance with

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requirements set forth by the commissioner of elementary and secondary education. The

department of elementary and secondary education shall collect performance reports from districts

and approve the use of funds prior to expenditure. The department of elementary and secondary

education shall ensure the funds are aligned to activities that are innovative and expansive and not

utilized for activities the district is currently funding;

     (i) State support for school resource officers. For purposes of this subsection, a school

resource officer (SRO) shall be defined as a career law enforcement officer with sworn authority

who is deployed by an employing police department or agency in a community-oriented policing

assignment to work in collaboration with one or more schools. School resource officers should have

completed at least forty (40) hours of specialized training in school policing, administered by an

accredited agency, before being assigned. Beginning in FY 2019, for a period of three (3) years,

school districts or municipalities that choose to employ school resource officers shall receive direct

state support for costs associated with employing such officers at public middle and high schools.

Districts or municipalities shall be reimbursed an amount equal to one-half (½) of the cost of

salaries and benefits for the qualifying positions. Funding will be provided for school resource

officer positions established on or after July 1, 2018, provided that:

     (1) Each school resource officer shall be assigned to one school:

     (i) Schools with enrollments below one thousand two hundred (1,200) students shall

require one school resource officer;

     (ii) Schools with enrollments of one thousand two hundred (1,200) or more students shall

require two school resource officers;

     (2) School resource officers hired in excess of the requirement noted above shall not be

eligible for reimbursement; and

     (3) Schools that eliminate existing school resource officer positions and create new

positions under this provision shall not be eligible for reimbursement; and

     (j) Categorical programs defined in subsections (a) through (g) shall be funded pursuant to

the transition plan in § 16-7.2-7.

     (k) State support for site-based reading specialists. For the purposes of this section, the

term “reading specialists” shall be defined by the Rhode Island teacher certification regulations.

Local education agencies (LEAs) that choose to hire new reading specialists shall receive direct

state support for a period of three (3) years after the date the specialist was hired. After accounting

for any federal funds or federal, state, or local grants received toward the costs associated with such

a position, the state shall reimburse LEAs an amount equal to one-half (1/2) of the cost of salaries

and benefits that remain the LEA’s responsibility.

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     (1) To receive the state reimbursement, reading specialists shall be hired to achieve the

following ratios:

     (i) Schools with enrollments of up to five hundred (500) students shall require one reading

specialist.

     (ii) Schools with enrollments of five hundred one (501) students to one thousand (1,000)

students shall require two (2) reading specialists.

     (iii) Schools with enrollments greater than one thousand (1,000) students shall require three

(3) reading specialists.

     (2) LEAs shall not be eligible to receive reimbursement for hiring reading specialists that

would result in ratios lower than those identified in subsection (k)(1) of this section, unless the LEA

provides a workload analysis to the department indicating that additional reading specialists are

required to deliver all specified services to students in a particular school or schools.

     (3) Schools or LEAs that eliminate existing reading specialist positions and create new

positions under this provision shall not be eligible for reimbursement.

     (4) Schools within the same LEA may share a reading specialist; provided, that the student-

to-specialist ratios between the sharing schools does not exceed those in subsection (k)(1) of this

section.

     (l) State support for site-based mathematics specialists. For the purposes of this section,

the term “mathematics specialists” shall be defined by the Rhode Island teacher certification

regulations. Local education agencies (LEAs) that choose to hire new mathematics specialists shall

receive direct state support for a period of three (3) years after the date the specialist was hired.

After accounting for any federal funds or federal, state, or local grants received toward the costs

associated with such a position, the state shall reimburse LEAs an amount equal to one-half (1/2)

of the cost of salaries and benefits that remain the LEA’s responsibility.

     (1) To receive the state reimbursement, mathematics specialists shall be hired to achieve

the following ratios:

     (i) Schools with enrollments of up to five hundred (500) students shall require one

mathematics specialist.

     (ii) Schools with enrollments of five hundred one (501) students to one thousand (1,000)

students shall require two (2) mathematics specialists.

     (iii) Schools with enrollments greater than one thousand (1,000) students shall require three

(3) mathematics specialists.

     (2) LEAs shall not be eligible to receive reimbursement for hiring mathematics specialists

that would result in ratios lower than those identified in subsection (l)(1) of this section, unless the

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LEA provides a workload analysis to the department indicating that additional mathematics

specialists are required to deliver all specified services to students in a particular school or schools.

     (3) Schools or LEAs that eliminate existing mathematics specialist positions and create

new positions under this provision shall not be eligible for reimbursement.

     (4) Schools within the same LEA may share a mathematics specialist; provided, that the

student-to-specialist ratios between the sharing schools does not exceed those in subsection (l)(1)

of this section.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- THE EDUCATION EQUITY AND PROPERTY TAX

RELIEF ACT

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     This act would provide local education agencies (LEAs) hiring site-based specialists for

reading and math to receive state reimbursement based on enrollment and specific guidelines.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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