HB-4322, As Passed House, April 1, 2004

SUBSTITUTE FOR

HOUSE BILL NO. 4322

                                                                             A bill to amend 1979 PA 94, entitled                                              

"The state school aid act of 1979,"                                         

by amending section 101 (MCL 388.1701), as amended by 2003 PA               

158.                                                                        

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

1       Sec. 101.  (1) To be eligible to receive state aid under                    

2   this act, not later than the fifth Wednesday after the pupil                

3   membership count day and not later than the fifth Wednesday after           

4   the supplemental count day, each district superintendent through            

5   the secretary of the district's board shall file with the                   

6   intermediate superintendent a certified and sworn copy of the               

7   number of pupils enrolled and in regular daily attendance in the            

8   district as of the pupil membership count day and as of the                 

9   supplemental count day, as applicable, for the current school               

10  year.  In addition, a district maintaining school during the                

1   entire year, as  provided under described in section 1561 of the           

2   revised school code, MCL 380.1561, shall file with the                      

3   intermediate superintendent a certified and sworn copy of the               

4   number of pupils enrolled and in regular daily attendance in the            

5   district for the current school year pursuant to rules                      

6   promulgated by the superintendent.  Not later than the seventh              

7   Wednesday after the pupil membership count day and not later than           

8   the seventh Wednesday after the supplemental count day, the                 

9   intermediate district shall transmit to the center the data filed           

10  by each of its constituent districts.  If a district fails to               

11  file the sworn and certified copy with the intermediate                     

12  superintendent in a timely manner, as required under this                   

13  subsection, the intermediate district shall notify the department           

14  and state aid due to be distributed under this act shall be                 

15  withheld from the defaulting district immediately, beginning with           

16  the next payment after the failure and continuing with each                 

17  payment until the district complies with this subsection.  If an            

18  intermediate district fails to transmit the data in its                     

19  possession in a timely and accurate manner to the department, as            

20  required under this subsection, state aid due to be distributed             

21  under this act shall be withheld from the defaulting intermediate           

22  district immediately, beginning with the next payment after the             

23  failure and continuing with each payment until the intermediate             

24  district complies with this subsection.  If a district or                   

25  intermediate district does not comply with this subsection by the           

26  end of the fiscal year, the district or intermediate district               

27  forfeits the amount withheld.  A person who willfully falsifies a           

1   figure or statement in the certified and sworn copy of enrollment           

2   shall be punished in the manner is subject to penalties

3   prescribed by section 161.                                                  

4       (2) To be eligible to receive state aid under this act, not                 

5   later than the twenty-fourth Wednesday after the pupil membership           

6   count day and not later than the twenty-fourth Wednesday after              

7   the supplemental count day, an intermediate district shall submit           

8   to the center, in a form and manner prescribed by the center, the           

9   audited enrollment and attendance data for the pupils of its                

10  constituent districts and of the intermediate district.  If an              

11  intermediate district fails to transmit the audited data as                 

12  required under this subsection, state aid due to be distributed             

13  under this act shall be withheld from the defaulting intermediate           

14  district immediately, beginning with the next payment after the             

15  failure and continuing with each payment until the intermediate             

16  district complies with this subsection.  If an intermediate                 

17  district does not comply with this subsection by the end of the             

18  fiscal year, the intermediate district forfeits the amount                  

19  withheld.                                                                   

20      (3) Except as otherwise provided in this section, each                      

21  district shall provide at least 1,098 hours of pupil                        

22  instruction.  Except as otherwise provided in this act, a                   

23  district failing to comply with the required minimum hours of               

24  pupil instruction under this subsection shall forfeit from its              

25  total state aid allocation an amount determined by applying a               

26  ratio of the number of hours the district was in noncompliance in           

27  relation to the required minimum number of hours under this                 

1   subsection.  Not later than August 1, the board of each district            

2   shall certify to the department the number of hours of pupil                

3   instruction in the previous school year.  If the district did not           

4   provide at least the required minimum number of hours of pupil              

5   instruction under this subsection, the deduction of state aid               

6   shall be made in the following fiscal year from the first payment           

7   of state school aid.  A district is not subject to forfeiture of            

8   funds under this subsection for a fiscal year in which a                    

9   forfeiture was already imposed under subsection  (6) (8).  Hours           

10  lost because of strikes or teachers' conferences shall not be               

11  counted as days or hours of pupil instruction.                              

12  (4) A district not having at least 75% of the district's                    

13  membership in attendance on any day of pupil instruction shall              

14  receive state aid in that proportion of 1/180 that the actual               

15  percent of attendance bears to the specified percentage.                    

16  However, this subsection does not apply to school attendance on             

17  the nationally recognized day to take daughters and sons to work.

18  (5) The superintendent shall promulgate rules he or she                     

19  considers necessary for the implementation of this  subsection

20  section.                                                                    

21  (6)  (4)  Except as otherwise provided in this subsection,                  

22  the first 30 hours for which pupil instruction is not provided              

23  because of conditions not within the control of school                      

24  authorities, such as severe storms, fires, epidemics, or health             

25  conditions as defined by the city, county, or state health                  

26  authorities, shall be counted as hours of pupil instruction.   In           

27  addition, for 2002-2003 only, the department shall count as days            

1   of pupil instruction not more than 5 additional days, and shall             

2   count as hours of pupil instruction not more than 30 hours, for             

3   which pupil instruction was not provided in a district from April           

4   3, 2003 to April 11, 2003 due to a storm.  Subsequent such hours            

5   shall not be counted as hours of pupil instruction.                         

6   (7)  (5)  A district  shall does not forfeit part of its                   

7   state aid appropriation because it adopts or has in existence an            

8   alternative scheduling program for pupils in kindergarten if the            

9   program provides at least the number of hours required under                

10  subsection (3) for a full-time equated membership for a pupil in            

11  kindergarten as provided under section 6(4).                                

12  (8)  (6)  Not later than April 15 of each fiscal year, the                  

13  board of each district shall certify to the department the                  

14  planned number of hours of pupil instruction in the district for            

15  the school year ending in the fiscal year.  In addition to any              

16  other penalty or forfeiture under this section, if at any time              

17  the department determines that 1 or more of the following has               

18  occurred in a district, the district shall forfeit in the current           

19  fiscal year beginning in the next payment to be calculated by the           

20  department a proportion of the funds due to the district under              

21  this act that is equal to the proportion below the required                 

22  minimum number of hours of pupil instruction under subsection               

23  (3), as specified in the following:                                         

24      (a) The district fails to operate its schools for at least                  

25  the required minimum number of hours of pupil instruction under             

26  subsection (3) in a school year, including hours counted under              

27  subsection  (4) (6).                                                       

1       (b) The board of the district takes formal action not to                    

2   operate its schools for at least the required minimum number of             

3   hours of pupil instruction under subsection (3) in a school year,           

4   including hours counted under subsection  (4) (6).                         

5   (9)  (7)  In providing the minimum number of hours of pupil                 

6   instruction required under subsection (3), a district shall use             

7   the following guidelines, and a district shall maintain records             

8   to substantiate its compliance with the following guidelines:               

9       (a) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a pupil                

10  must be scheduled for at least the required minimum number of               

11  hours of instruction, excluding study halls, or at least the sum            

12  of 90 hours plus the required minimum number of hours of                    

13  instruction, including up to 2 study halls.                                 

14      (b) The time a pupil is assigned to any tutorial activity in                

15  a block schedule may be considered instructional time, unless               

16  that time is determined in an audit to be a study hall period.              

17      (c) A pupil in grades 9 to 12 for whom a reduced schedule is                

18  determined to be in the individual pupil's best educational                 

19  interest must be scheduled for a number of hours equal to at                

20  least 80% of the required minimum number of hours of pupil                  

21  instruction to be considered a full-time equivalent pupil.                  

22      (d) If a pupil in grades 9 to 12 who is enrolled in a                       

23  cooperative education program or a special education pupil cannot           

24  receive the required minimum number of hours of pupil instruction           

25  solely because of travel time between instructional sites during            

26  the school day, that travel time, up to a maximum of 3 hours per            

27  school week, shall be considered to be pupil instruction time for           

1   the purpose of determining whether the pupil is receiving the               

2   required minimum number of hours of pupil instruction.  However,            

3   if a district demonstrates to the satisfaction of the department            

4   that the travel time limitation under this subdivision would                

5   create undue costs or hardship to the district, the department              

6   may consider more travel time to be pupil instruction time for              

7   this purpose.                                                               

8   (10)  (8)  The department shall apply the guidelines under                  

9   subsection  (7) (9) in calculating the full-time equivalency of            

10  pupils.                                                                     

11  (11)  (9)  Upon application by the district for a particular                

12  fiscal year, the superintendent may waive for a district the                

13  minimum number of hours of pupil instruction requirement of                 

14  subsection (3) for a department-approved alternative education              

15  program.  If a district applies for and receives a waiver under             

16  this subsection and complies with the terms of the waiver, for              

17  the fiscal year covered by the waiver the district is not subject           

18  to forfeiture under this section for the specific program covered           

19  by the waiver.                                                              

20  (12)  (10)  A district may count up to 51 hours of                          

21  professional development for teachers, including the 5 hours of             

22  online professional development provided by the Michigan virtual            

23  university under section 98, as hours of pupil instruction.  A              

24  district that elects to use this exception shall notify the                 

25  department of its election.