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MPAAA Legislative Primer
Robert Dickinson MPAAA Executive Director MPAAA Certification Course Need internet so can visit Michigan Legislature website, pupil accounting manual, etc
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Pupil Accounting Legal Primer Why it matters
The laws form the basis of the pupil accounting and auditing work The MDE interprets these laws via administrative rules, manuals and other guidance, including audit appeal decisions by State Supt
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Overview Pupil accounting/auditing based on School Aid Act and School Code Part I – Looking up laws, bills, legislative history, etc Part II – Basic review of school laws, rules, manuals Part III – Understanding State Aid
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Part I Overview How to look up bills How to track bills
How to look up laws
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Part II Overview School Funding Constitutional Provision
State School Aid Act State Revised School Code Pupil Accounting Administrative Rules Pupil Accounting Manual Pupil Auditing Manual Adult Ed Participant Accounting Manual Adult Ed Participant Auditing Manual Michigan Attorney General Opinions
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How to look up bills www.MichiganLegislature.org
Enter bill number or bill content in search engine Review marked up bill Review Senate and House Fiscal Agency Summaries Track bill Select a Bill that is going thru House or Senate
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Bill lookup and content for CURRENT session, past if you select it.
MCL lookup Go live – SB 702
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Bill lookup and content for CURRENT session, p0ast if you select it.
MCL lookup
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HB 4001 is 2014 PA 563 effective 7/1/15 Bill documents is how bill looked when introduced and as passed the house, senate, etc It is easier to see what the bill amended when you look at how it last passed (highlights changes) so in this case House Concurred Bill, rather than Public Act (can’t see changes) Bill analysis is how house fiscal and senate fiscal interpret bill History tracks the bill thru the legislative process “Find this PA in MCL” icon shows you what the bill amended if it became a Pupil Act,
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Tracking Bills House (HB) or Senate (SB) Bill Typical bill chronology:
Introduced Bill – most bills end here As Passed by House [or Senate] As Passed by Senate [or House] Concurred Bill (if Senate/House have to work out differences) Public Act – if/when bill becomes law Remember Bills don’t mean anything unless they become Laws – Public Act ##, effective date, key
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Tracking Bills Legislative Sessions last 2 years
15/16 ended 12/31/2016 (actually, day of last legislative session, probably mid-December) Anything that didn’t become law, died Re-submit, new numbers, starting at SB 1 and HB 1 of 17/18 Cleans house every 24 months Remember Bills don’t mean anything unless they become Laws – Public Act ##, effective date, key
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School House Rock I’m Just a Bill – If you were a kid in the 70’s
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Bill Page - Summaries House Fiscal Agency Analysis
Senate Fiscal Analysis Typically a Summary as Introduced and a Summary as Passed House Fiscal Agency Senate Fiscal Agency Can’t always rely on summaries, they may not emphasize the thiongs that are important for us. Emphasizes costs, not effort of non-state departments.
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Repeat of FOA slide HB 4001, 2014 PA 563 to see history of Bill and to see Bill Analysis . . . .
Bill Documents is how bill looked when introduced and as passed the house, senate, etc It is easier to see what the bill amended when you look at how it last passed (highlights changes) so in this case House Concurred Bill, rather than Public Act (can’t see changes) Bill Analysis is how house fiscal and senate fiscal interpret bill History tracks the bill thru the legislative process
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Even tracks all the history HJ, SJ – who would want to look all that up? Not me
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Let’s Look Up a Bill www.MichiganLegislature.org
By bill number or by content What’s it changing? What’s its status? What’s the legislative analysis? What else should we review, know? Spend some time looking up a bill or two If don’t have any use Michigan Legislature website and look up bills under Education category
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How to look up laws www.MichiganLegislature.org
Every bill that becomes a law, gets codified in Michigan Compiled Laws, MCL Enter MCL number or content in search engine Same website as looking up a bill
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PAM Section 2 on Days and Hours sites Section 101 (page 2-1) or MCL (in References o page 2-12) so I want to take a look at that section
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HB 4001 amended School Aid Act for and amended this section, lets take a look at the amended section which goes into effect October 1, 2015 (just in time for count day)!
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MCL is part of State School Aid Act – count day submission requirements, days and hours requirements, alternative ed program requirements, etc.
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Review Section of Law Friendly link for emailing
Printer Friendly link, Html or Pdf Legislative History provided in chronological order when enacted to newest change, by year, public act # and effective date:
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History is at bottom, oldest listed first by year, 1979, PA# 94 and effective date, October 1, 1979, then amendments by year, PA #, effective date, last one 2015 PA 85 effective October 1, 2015
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Public Act Search Page “Section” number to MCL conversion
“ ” + section # (addition) Section 1 – MCL – State Aid Act begins Section 6 – MCL Definitions Section 25e – MCL e – FTE Transfer Section 101 – MCL – Days and Hours Works in Google as well
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Same website, look on left hand side for Public Act (Signed Bills) icon
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I typed in 85, the School Aid Act for – I found it in the legislative history for MCL , slide 26
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Can’t remember the public act number for the school aid act, you can look at the 2015 Public Acts Table and look for it I.E means Legislature voted to give the Act immediate effect What I like the PA Tables for too is to see what laws where passed that year, subject is always listed so you could scroll for education laws. # means tie bar (these bills were tie barred to the May 5, 2015 road/schools funding ballot proposal
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Found it . . . . 2015 PA 85, 2015-16 State School Aid Budget is HB 4115
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Find this bill several different ways: 1) know HB #, year, 2) know PA #, year, 3) know year of PA, 4) know MCL # and look at legislative history to find PA #
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How Do I Find the Legislative History
If know the Bill # and year, great, look it up If know the MCL, look at legislative history at end of MCL to identify the Public Act # and year If know the Public Act # and/or year, you can use the Pupil Act (Signed Bills) icon on Michigan Legislature webpage Public Act Tables for present Obtain the Bill Number Then do Bill Search by Bill Number and Legislative Session (year) It all brings you back to Bill
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Up to now, CHANGES in the law, not the WHOLE law
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Ctrl - F
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Part II Overview School Funding Constitutional Provision
State School Aid Act State Revised School Code Pupil Accounting Administrative Rules Pupil Accounting Manual Pupil Auditing Manual Michigan Attorney General Opinions
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Michigan Constitution Mandates Free Public Education
Article VIII, Section 2 The legislature shall maintain and support a system of free public elementary and secondary schools as defined by law. You can find constitutional provisions on Michigan Legislature website – in MCL content search box type “constitution”
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Legislation The Revised School Code, MCL et. seq. provides the basic system of public instruction for elementary and secondary schools The State School Aid Act, MCL et. seq. provides the financial support for public elementary and secondary schools in our state References to the School Code and School Aid Act are the legal basis of pupil accounting and auditing
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State School Aid Act - MCLs
a b b f f a , 1624b e a , 1653a a , 1705c , 1763a b d Pupil Accounting Legal Reference Appendix L These are some of the State School Aid Act provisions specifically referenced in pupil accounting manuals The MCLs
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State School Code - MCLs
a , 1148a , 1284a, 1284b , 1298 , 1311a, 1311b Pupil Accounting Legal Reference Appendix L These are some of the State School Code provisions specifically referenced in pupil accounting manuals
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Pupil Accounting Administrative Rules
State Superintendent Establishes Rules Following Administrative Procedures Act (APA) MCL – MCL Authorized by MCL (duties of state board of ed, rule waivers), MCL (length of school year, rules), MCL (9)(definition of “rule”), MCL (counting membership rules), MCL (days and hours waiver), MCL & (1996 Gov. Engler Executive Order transferring administrative powers and duties from state board to state supt.) Last Promulgated in 2008 Agency Admin Rules have the effect of law Legal references in rules, both PA and MCL ##s Dept. of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) Office of Regulatory Reinvention
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Search Michigan Administrative Rules
By Department (of Education) By Number (Education Rules in R – R ) Google “Michigan Administrative Code” DO NOT TRY to find this using their menu system. It’s almost impossible!!!
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Referenced in Pupil Accounting Manual
Answers “Where do they get the authority to require that!”
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Pupil Accounting Rules - Overview
R Definitions R Pupils to be counted in membership R Pupils not to be counted in membership R Schools of Choice R Computation of Membership R Pupil Instructional Time R340.10a Travel Time; Instructional Time
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Pupil Accounting Rules - Overview
R Virtual learning, online learning, distance learning, self-scheduled R Independent Study R Learning Labs R Experiential learning courses R Work-based learning experiences R Work-based learning CTE programs R Postsecondary dual enrollment R Waiver What’s missing???? 25e, 23a, 21f
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Pupil Accounting Manual
PAM provides guidance on pupil membership and count requirements – updated annually Developed by MDE Office of State Aid and School Finance Required by Law MCL Legal References/Citations Provided to State Law and Rules in PAM Sections
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PAM Section 1 – Required Documentation
District Level: calendar, attendance policy, grad requirements, board approved courses Building/Program Level: teacher/class schedule, pupil alpha list, Pop III lists, attendance records, attendance policy, excused absence documentation Pupil Level: enrollment record (CA60), proof of identity and age, schedule Statutory References
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PAM Section 2- Days and Hours
Days of Instruction Hours of Instruction Special Ed Early Childhood Classroom Program, R Special Ed Early Childhood Services, R or Calendars – district wide vs. building/program, common calendar, labor day start, legal holidays
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PAM Section 2 – Days and Hours Cont.
Pupil Instructional Hours Requirements Certified Teacher Requirement Forgiven Days and Hours 75% Attendance Requirement State Aid Penalty for failing to meet required days, hours and/or 75% attendance Statutory References
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PAM Section 3 – Count Requirements
Count Days – 1st Wed in Oct, 2nd Wed in Feb Pupil Eligibility - enroll on or before count day, meet age requirement, proof of identity and age, residency, class schedule, attendance Teacher Certification Audit Appeals – potentially 3 steps Informal appeal to ISD auditor Appeal to MDE Office of Audits Appeal to State Superintendent Statutory references
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PAM Section 4 - Residency
Resident Pupils – district of residence, home of relative, etc. Nonresident Pupils Treated as Residents – charter schools, schools of choice, alt ed, nonpublic part time pupils, child of employee, etc. Waiver/Release from Resident District – annually Statutory References
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PAM Section 5 – Nonconventional Pupils aka Pop IIIs
Section 5-A Alternative Ed Pupils Section 5-B Cooperative Ed Programs Section 5-C Home Based Section 5-D Homebound/Hospitalized Section 5-E Nonpublic Part-Time and Homeschooled Pupils Section 5-F Part-time Pupils
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PAM Section 5 – Pop III Cont.
Section 5-G-A Postsecondary Dual Enrollment Section 5-G-B Early Middle College Section 5-H Reduced-Schedule Pupils Section 5-I 105/105c Schools of Choice Section 5-J ISD Schools of Choice Section 5-K Special Ed Early Childhood Section 5-L Special Ed Transition Services Section 5J under former section 91 in the State School Aid Act, MCL and pilot ISD SOC programs MCL a Repealed. 1993, Act 336, Eff. Oct. 1, Compiler's Notes: The repealed section pertained to long-range school improvement plans, annual education report, and core curriculum. a Cessation of pilot intermediate district schools of choice program; enrollment of nonresident pupil in district. Sec. 91a. If a district allowed a nonresident pupil to enroll in the district under a pilot intermediate district schools of choice program under former section 91, the district shall continue to allow that pupil to enroll in the district until the pupil graduates from high school even if the district ceases to participate in the pilot intermediate district schools of choice program or the program is discontinued. History: Add. 1995, Act 130, Eff. Oct. 1, 1995
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PAM Section 5 – Pop IIIs Cont.
Section 5-M Split-Schedule Pupils Section 5-N Suspension and Expulsion Section 5-O-A Offline Program-based Instruction Independent Study Section 5-O-B Offline Seat Time Waiver Section 5-O-C Cyber Schools Section 5-O-D Virtual Learning Section 5-P Work Based Learning
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Section 5 – NEW Pop IIIs? Section 5-Q-A Section 23a Dropout Recovery Program Section 5-Q-B Section 25e Pupil Membership Transfers Each Section 5 Subsection has Statutory References
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PAM Section 6 and Appendices
6-A Experiential Learning 6-B Peer to Peer Programs Appendix A Glossary of Terms Appendix B Abbreviations/Acronyms R (i) references is part of Special Education Program rules (i) For worksite-based learning, a written agreement/plan is required and shall be signed by the student, parent, school, and worksite representative. The agreement shall set forth all of the following information: (i) Expectations and standards of attainment. (ii) Job activities. (iii) Time and duration of the program. (iv) Wages to be paid to the student, if applicable. (v) Related instruction, if applicable. The superintendent of the school district shall designate a staff member to visit the student's worksite at least once every 30 calendar days for the duration of the program to check attendance and student progress and assess the placement in terms of health, safety, and welfare of the student.
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Pupil Membership Auditing Manual
Resource for conducting pupil membership audits Prepared by MDE Office of Financial Management Updated annually and subject to change Required by law MCL Topical Index included with References/Citations to School Code, School Aid Act, Pupil Accounting Rules and PAM
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Pupil Auditing Manual Introduction – pupil membership audit required
General Requirements Desk audit each building/program every count Field audit on audit cycle for field audits Audit frequency and scope based on risk assessment Legal references included Introduction and Chapter 1
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Pupil Auditing Manual –Desk Audit
Review of district documentation Desk Audit Program Check List Desk Audit Adjustments Legal References included Chapter 2
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Pupil Auditing Manual – Field Audit
Review pupil membership records verify counts and interview school district staff Field Audit Program Local District Planning Form Risk Assessment Select Sample Conduct Field Audit for Pop I, II, and III Audit Adjustment Chapter 3
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Pupil Auditing Manual – Field Audit
Pupil Enrollment, Age, Residency Pop I Present on Count Day – verify attendance Pop II Absent on Count Day – 10/30 day rule Pop III Nonconventional Pupils – Section 5 and 6 of the PAM – each have their own audit standard and audit requirements Chapter 3
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Pupil Auditing Manual – Reports & Appeals
Audit Report - DS 4061/DS 4120 and Audit Narrative in MSDS MCL State Aid Payments adjusted MCL (2) Appeals – ISD Informal Appeal and Appeal to MDE Office of Financial Management and Final Appeal to State Superintendent State Supt Decisions on Audit Appeals on MDE Administrative Law Website Chapter 4 Audit Reports and Repayments and Chapter 5 Audit Appeal Process
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Pupil Auditing Manual – GAD Audit
Graduation and Dropout Audit for the previous 3 grad year cohorts - 4 year, 5 year and 6 year grad rate. GAD Application in MSDS GAD Audit late October- early December CEPI calculates grad/dropout rate late January GAD Audit high school buildings subject to field audit that year 2% grad code, 5% exempt code Can also submit exit code change requests Chapter 7 Exit Status, Dropout Rates and Graduate Rate Audits
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Pupil Auditing Manual - Appendices
Statement of Independence General Audit Findings Desk Audit Program Specific Audit Findings Local District Planning Form CPA Confirmation Request Building Risk Assessment Form Acronyms and Due Dates Sample Summary and Analysis Legal References FTE Adjustment Form
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Pupil Auditing Manual – Legal Reference Appendix L
By topic A to Z Includes reference to: School Code School Aid Act Pupil Accounting Rule Pupil Accounting Manual Other
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Audit Appeals – State Supt
State Supt Decisions are posted on MDE Administrative Law website Click on MDE Administrative Law Decisions Click on the + before Audit Cases in the top left corner, scroll down to see decisions, by district and date
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MDE Administrative Law Office – final decisions by the State Supt (second level appeals to MDE, after decision by MDE Office of Audits)
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Audit Cases – decided by State Supt (not first level MDE, but second/final level MDE)
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Almost like they don’t want people to know about decisions to avoid them being used as precedent!!
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Search Attorney General Opinions
By Keywords By Subject By Headnote By Number Also listed in chronological order by number or year
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Search AG Opinions by Number
Each Attorney General Opinion has it’s own number Pupil Accounting Manual references AG opinions like this, with number then year, See PAM Residency p. 4-5 Attorney General Opinions: 5004, May 1976 5112, Dec 1976 5574, Sept 1979 5782, Sept 1980 5925, June 1981 5995, Oct 1981 6316, Sept 1985 7154, March 2004
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Search AG Opinions by Text
If you know the subject matter and know there was an attorney general opinion or want to check if there is an attorney general opinion For example, guardianship
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Office of State Aid and School Finance Website
State School Aid Updates – monthly State School Aid and School Finance Forms, includes Days & Clock Hours, Preliminary Pupil Headcount Report for new PSAs, Waivers Office of State Aid and School Finance Pupil Accounting Information, key webpage Wanted to share some key websites . . .
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Other State Website Links
Office of Audits MDE Superintendent Memos School Finance and Law – School Law MDE Administrators Website There are other websites that are helpful, including your ISD auditors website but wanted to share some key MDE websites with you.
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FERPA – Privacy of Student Records
Privacy Technical Assistance Center USDOE FERPA 101 – website has good FERPA training materials Family Policy Compliance Office USDOE
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Part III - State School Aid
The Basics: 17/18 funding – Based on amount of 16/17 funding Those at Foundation level ($7,511) last year - $7,631 per pupil (Up $120 from last year Those between $7,512 and $8,289 – Sliding scale increase from $120 to $80 per pupil Above $8,289 - $60 per pupil increase As foundation increases, more Districts funded at that level
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State School Aid The Basics:
Except – Districts don’t actually get this amount of money Funding level is guarantee of state and local revenues combined So, actual payment from MDE = difference between local funds (property taxes) and funding level If local revenue exceeds guarantee level, no State funding Example – 17/18 Berkley Schools (Oakland county) – Funding guarantee $8,123 – Actual State Aid after local revenue $576
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State School Aid The Basics:
Per Pupil funding– Artificial number (called ‘State Aid Membership’) Funding level formula: 90% of Fall FTE 10% of PRECEEDING Spring FTE There are exceptions to this – New grades, new PSAs in first 2 years, etc State Aid payments start in October – New Grades use 50/50 of fall/spring for the new grade only New PSA – 50/50 average of first 2 counts 3 year average for districts with fewer than 4.5 kids/sq mile.
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State School Aid The Basics: Special Ed funding
All students being educated with IEP program funded with Regular Ed formula Then, actual costs are compared: Actual Special ed costs (previous year) * % + Special ed transportation costs * % (called Headlee Obligation) If Headlee > foundation, difference is paid as ‘Headlee Obligation Payment payment’
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State School Aid The Basics: Categoricals:
Funds that some districts receive, in excess of above, for particular program/student populations 102D data analytical tools 31A at-risk MSPERS retirement supplement (continuing and 1-time)
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State School Aid The Basics: Residency:
Students attending your District living elsewhere You receive RESIDENT funding, not your funding Can add to or reduce your funding Less relevant as foundation grows, more districts are funded at that level
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State School Aid Know your numbers!: www.Michigan.gov/SASF
All funding reports for every District State Aid Status report Changes month-month Nonresident reports Monthly State Aid Update newsletter Taxable valuation information
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State School Aid
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State School Aid
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Questions? rob@mpaaa.org (517) 853-1413
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