Public School Enrollment Integrity Amendment Act of 2001
Bill 14-243

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Councilmember Kevin P. Chavous

To amend the Uniform Per Student Funding Formula for Public Schools and Public Charter Schools Act of 1998 and the District of Columbia School Reform Act of 1995 to provide a definition for resident student, to clarify the dates of the pupil counts to which appropriations under the Uniform Per Student Funding Formula apply for District of Columbia public schools versus that for public charter schools, to require the Mayor to establish a committee to adopt a policy governing proof of District residency for school enrollment purposes, to define requirements and responsibility for audits of enrollment at District of Columbia public schools and public charter schools, to provide for quarterly payments to the public charter schools, to define their schedule and basis in enrollment, to clarify the effect the annual enrollment audit is to have upon the schedule and amount of payments, to make conforming amendments regarding the definition of nonresident and quarterly enrollment reporting Funding Formula, to require that the Mayor be responsible for collecting enrollment reports until the State Education Office assumes the role to eliminate redundant or inconsistent audit provisions, to make conforming amendments to the fund transfer provisions for public charter schools, to clarify the definition of new schools; and to amend the Public School Enrollment Census Act of 1998 to make conforming amendments.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this act may be cited as the "Public School Enrollment Integrity Amendment Act of 2001".

Sec. 2. The Uniform Per Student Funding Formula for Public Schools and Public Charter Schools Act of 1998, effective March 26, 1999 (D.C. Law 12-207; D.C. Code § 31-2901), is amended as follows:

(a) Section 102 (D.C. Code §31-2901) is amended by adding a new paragraph (10A) to read as follows:

"(10A) "Resident student" means a student who is enrolled in a District of Columbia public school or a public charter school, and is an adult who resides in the District of Columbia, or is a minor who has a parent, guardian, or custodian residing in the District of Columbia.".

(b) Section 107 (D.C. Code § 31-2906) is amended to read as follows:

"(a) Annual appropriations for the DCPS pursuant to the Formula shall be based on the number of resident students enrolled in the DCPS on October 5 in the year preceding the fiscal year for which the appropriation is made. This count shall be verified as provided in subsection (e) of this section.

"(b) Annual appropriations for the public charter schools pursuant to the Formula shall equal the total estimated costs for the following:

"(1) The number of resident students enrolled in all public charter schools combined as of October S in the year preceding the fiscal year for which the appropriation is made, and verified as provided in subsection (e) of this section, plus or minus;

"(2) The number of resident students projected to be enrolled in all public charter schools combined during the fiscal year for which the appropriation is made, and calculated as provided in subsection (f) of this section, plus;

"(3) The annual budget of the District of Columbia Public Charter School Board and, beginning in fiscal year 2002, the Public Charter School Office of the Board of Education, provided, plus;

"(4) Five percent of the total amount generated pursuant to paragraphs (1), (2) =d 13) of this subsection, to be put into escrow as a reserve for payments to public charter schools in case enrollment, including enrollment in special needs categories, should exceed that of the projections on which costs are based pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection. Any amount remaining in the escrow at the end of each fiscal year shall revert to the General Fund.

"(c) The Mayor shall establish a committee to develop and implement, within 90 days of the of the effective date of the Public School Enrollment Integrity Emergency Amendment Act of 2000, a policy governing proof of District residency for the purposes of this section and the District of Columbia Nonresident Tuition act, approved September 8, 1970 (74 Stat. 853; D.C. Code § 31-602 et seq.). The committee shall be composed of the Mayor, the Chair of the District Council Committee on Education, Libraries and Recreation, the Superintendent of District of Columbia Public Schools, a representative of each of the eligible chartering authorities, and a representative of the D.C. Charter Public School Coalition. Upon establishment of a state education office, the Mayor shall transfer this function to that office.

"(d) The residency policy developed pursuant to subsection (c) of this section shall apply equally to students in DCPS and the public charter schools.

"(e) The student counts reported for October 5 of each year shall be verified by an independent contractor commissioned by the Mayor. The independent contractor shall perform a census on the student enrollment of each DCPS and of each public charter school. The verification process shall begin no later than one week following the day on which the count is taken. The verification shall cover the information required by section 2402 of the District of Columbia School Reform Act of 1995, approved April 26, 1996 (110 Stat. 257; D.C. Code §31-2853.42) ("School Reform Act"), and shall be transmitted by the Mayor to the Council, the Authority, the Comptroller General of the United States, and the appropriate Congressional committees no later than the following December 31. Until the verification is transmitted, the unaudited October count shall serve as the basis for the annual appropriation for the following fiscal year and for quarterly payments.

"(f) Preliminary projections of Public Charter School enrollment shall be made by each chartering authority for the Public Charter Schools under its supervision, and submitted to the Mayor by the date on which the DCPS is required to submit its budget request to the Mayor. The chartering authorities may submit revisions of such projections to the Mayor and Council at any time before the Council committee with oversight responsibilities for the public education budget reports its recommendations on that budget to the Council.

(c) A new section 107a is added to read as follows:

"Sec. 107a. Payments.

"(a) Except as provided in subsection (b)(2) of this section, following the enactment of an act making appropriations for the District of Columbia each fiscal year, the Mayor shall provide to DCPS the full amount of its appropriation in accordance with standard procedures for independent agencies. The Mayor shall make payments to each public charter school from the escrow account established under section 2403 of the School Reform Act to a bank designated by each school. The annual payment shall be made in the form of four quarterly payments calculated in accordance with subsections (b), (c) and (d) of this section, provided; however, that the entire annual payment for facilities pursuant to section 109 shall be included in the first payment of the fiscal year and that any payment for new charter schools pursuant to section 2403 of the School Act shall also be included in the first payment of the fiscal year. The first payment shall be made no later than July 15; subsequent payments shall be made no later than October 15, . January 15, and April 15.

"(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, each payment shall be one=h of each public charter school's entitlement based on its October enrollment count. The basis of the July 15 and October 15 payments shall be the unaudited numbers contained in the reports submitted by the eligible chartering authorities under subsection(a) of section 31-2853.42 of the D.C. Code. The basis of the January 15 and April 15 payments shall be the audited October enrollment numbers, provided that these amounts shall be adjusted in accordance with the provisions of subsection (c) of this section.

(2) The payment of October 15, 2000 shall be 50% of each public charter school's entitlement based on its unaudited October 5 enrollment count.

"(c) Payments shall not be reduced or delayed pending the conduct and results of the audit prescribed by section 107(e). If the audit finds that the number of verified resident students in enrollment at any public charter school differs from that on which its July 15 and October 15 payments were based, the Mayor shall recalculate the appropriate amount of subsequent payments accordingly, adjusting them by the amount of the discrepancy.

"(d) Payments for special education, limited English proficient students, and other add-on components of the Funding Formula shall be included in the quarterly payments to public charter schools. Payments shall reflect one-quarter of the annual per student amount for each add-on; provided, however, that add-ons for special education and limited English proficient students shall be added on a pro rata basis from the date on which a public charter school begins to provide add-on  services for such students.

"(e) Prior to or concurrent with any payment made pursuant to this section, the Chief Financial Officer of the District of Columbia shall provide to each public charter school an accounting indicating what the payment is for and how it was calculated.".

Sec. 3. The District of Columbia School Reform Amendment Act of 1995, approved April 26, 1996 (110 Stat. 226; D.C. Code §31-2851 et seq.), is amended as follows:

(a) Section 2002 (25)(A) (D.C. Code §31-2852 (25)(A)), is amended by striking the word "parent" and inserting the phrase "parent, guardian or custodian" in its place.

(1) Subsection (a) is amended to read as follows:

"(a) Quarterly reporting requirement. - On June 30, October 15, December 15, and March 30 of each year the District of Columbia public schools and each eligible chartering authority shall submit a report to the Mayor containing the information described in subsection (b) of this section that is applicable to their schools; provided, however, that in the case of the June 30 report the information submitted by each eligible chartering authority shall be in the form of estimates of the number of students who will fall into each category on the following October 5.".

(2) Subsection (b) is amended by striking the phrase following "Calculation of the number of students not later than 30 days after April 26, 1996, and not later than October 15, of each years thereafter, the Board shall calculate the following:" and inserting in the phrase "The reports described in subsection (a) of this section shall contain the following information:" in its place.

(3) Subsection (c) is amended to read as follows:

"(c) Annual reports. - Not later than October 30 of each year the Mayor shall prepare and submit to the Authority, the Council, the Comptroller General of the United States, and the appropriate congressional committees a report containing a summary of the calculations made pursuant to subsection (b) of this subsection, including the four immediately prior reporting periods specified in subsection (a) of this section.". (4) Subsection (d) is repealed.

(1) Subsection (a)(2)(A)(i) is amended to read as follows:

"(a)(2)(A)(i) In General. -- Except as provided in sub-subparagraph (ii) of this subparagraph, no later than July 15, October 15, January 15, and April 15 of each year, the Mayor shall transfer, by electronic funds transfer, the quarterly payments for each public charter school as prescribed in section 107a of the Uniform Per Student Funding Formula for Public Schools and Public Charter Schools Act of 1998, effective (D.C. Law ; D.C. Code §31-2906(a), to a bank designated by such school."

(2) Subsection (a)(2)(A)(ii) is amended to read as follows:

"(a)(2)(A)(ii) Reduction in case of a new school. -- In the case of a public charter school that has received a payment pursuant to subsection (b) of this section in the fiscal year immediately preceding the fiscal year in which a transfer pursuant to sub-subparagraph (i) of this subparagraph is made, the amounts transferred to the school under sub-subparagraph (i) of this paragraph shall be reduced by an amount equal to 25% of the amount of the payment pursuant to subsection (b).".

(3) Subsection (a)(2)(B) is repealed.

(4) Subsection (b)(4) is amended to read as follows:

"(4) Credits to fund.- Upon the receipt of each of its payments pursuant to subsection (a)(2)(A) of this section by a public charter school described in paragraph (5) of this subsection of each of its payments under subsection, the Chief Financial Officer of the District of Columbia shall credit the New Charter School Fund with 25 % of the amount paid to the school pursuant to paragraph (3) of this subsection:".

(5) Subsection (b)(5)(B) is amended to read as follows:

"(B) Has had its petition to establish a public charter school approved pursuant to section 2203 of this Act and is scheduled to begin operation as a public charter school in the fiscal year for which funds are appropriated to carry out the provisions of this subsection.".

(6) A new subsection (c) is added to read as follows:

"(c) Additional payment to New Schools. -Until the first day of the fiscal year shall be changed to July 1, the amount of payment to a public charter school described in section 2403(b)(5)(B), shall be increased by 1/12 of the total dollar amount to which the public charter school is entitled for the fiscal year based on its unaudited October 5 enrollment.".

Sec. 4. Section 702 of the Public School Enrollment Census Act of 1998, effective March 26, 1999 (D.C. Law 12-175, D.C. Code §31-2853.42a), is amended to read as follows:

"(a) The Board of Education and the District of Columbia Public Schools shall hire an independent contractor to perform a census of the school employees of the District of Columbia Public Schools, their job classifications, and duties.

(b) Subsection (b) is repealed.

The fiscal impact statement is attached.

Sec. 6. This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or-in the event of veto by the Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), approval by the Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority as provided in section 203(a) of the District of Columbia Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Act of 1995, approved April 17, 1995 (109 Stat. 116; D.C. Code §47-392.3(a)), a 30-day period of Congressional review as provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 24, 1973 (87 Star. 813; D.C. Code §1-233(c)(1)), and publication in the District of Columbia Register.