HB-5666, As Passed Senate, May 13, 2004                                     

    SENATE SUBSTITUTE FOR

    HOUSE BILL NO. 5666

                                                                             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 section 1561 of the revised school           

2   code, MCL 380.1561, shall file with the intermediate                        

3   superintendent a certified and sworn copy of the number of pupils           

4   enrolled and in regular daily attendance in the district for the            

5   current school year pursuant to rules promulgated by the                    

6   superintendent.  Not later than the seventh Wednesday after the             

7   pupil membership count day and not later than the seventh                   

8   Wednesday after the supplemental count day, the intermediate                

9   district shall transmit to the center the data filed by each of             

10  its constituent districts.  If a district fails to file the sworn           

11  and certified copy with the intermediate superintendent in a                

12  timely manner, as required under this subsection, the                       

13  intermediate district shall notify the department and state aid             

14  due to be distributed under this act shall be withheld from the             

15  defaulting district immediately, beginning with the next payment            

16  after the failure and continuing with each payment until the                

17  district complies with this subsection.  If an intermediate                 

18  district fails to transmit the data in its possession in a timely           

19  and accurate manner to the department, as required under this               

20  subsection, state aid due to be distributed under this act shall            

21  be withheld from the defaulting intermediate district                       

22  immediately, beginning with the next payment after the failure              

23  and continuing with each payment until the intermediate district            

24  complies with this subsection.  If a district or intermediate               

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

26  fiscal year, the district or intermediate district forfeits the             

27  amount withheld.  A person who willfully falsifies a figure or              

1   statement in the certified and sworn copy of enrollment shall be            

2   punished in the manner prescribed by section 161.                           

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

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

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

6   the supplemental count day, an intermediate district shall submit           

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

8   audited enrollment and attendance data for the pupils of its                

9   constituent districts and of the intermediate district.  If an              

10  intermediate district fails to transmit the audited data as                 

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

12  under this act shall be withheld from the defaulting intermediate           

13  district immediately, beginning with the next payment after the             

14  failure and continuing with each payment until the intermediate             

15  district complies with this subsection.  If an intermediate                 

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

17  fiscal year, the intermediate district forfeits the amount                  

18  withheld.                                                                   

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

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

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

22  district failing to comply with the required minimum hours of               

23  pupil instruction under this subsection shall forfeit from its              

24  total state aid allocation an amount determined by applying a               

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

26  relation to the required minimum number of hours under this                 

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

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

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

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

4   instruction under this subsection, the deduction of state aid               

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

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

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

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

9   because of strikes or teachers' conferences shall not be counted            

10  as days or hours of pupil instruction.  A district not having at            

11  least 75% of the district's membership in attendance on any day             

12  of pupil instruction shall receive state aid in that proportion             

13  of 1/180 that the actual percent of attendance bears to the                 

14  specified percentage.  The superintendent shall promulgate rules            

15  for the implementation of this subsection.                                  

16      (4) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, the                    

17  first 30 hours for which pupil instruction is not provided                  

18  because of conditions not within the control of school                      

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

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

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

22  addition, for  2002-2003 2003-2004 only, the department shall              

23  count as  days of pupil instruction not more than 5 additional              

24  days, and shall count as  hours of pupil instruction not more               

25  than  30 20 additional hours  ,  for which pupil instruction was           

26  not provided in a  district from April 3, 2003 to April 11, 2003            

27  due to a storm school in a district due to structural roof and             

1   truss damage that required the school to be closed.  Beginning in           

2   2004-2005, the department shall count as hours of pupil                     

3   instruction for a fiscal year not more than 30 additional hours             

4   for which pupil instruction is not provided in a district after             

5   April 1 of the applicable school year due to unusual and                    

6   extenuating occurrences resulting from conditions not within the            

7   control of school authorities such as those conditions described            

8   in this subsection. Subsequent such hours shall not be counted as           

9   hours of pupil instruction.                                                 

10      (5) A district shall not forfeit part of its state aid                      

11  appropriation because it adopts or has in existence an                      

12  alternative scheduling program for pupils in kindergarten if the            

13  program provides at least the number of hours required under                

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

15  kindergarten as provided under section 6(4).                                

16      (6) Not later than April 15 of each fiscal year, the board of               

17  each district shall certify to the department the planned number            

18  of hours of pupil instruction in the district for the school year           

19  ending in the fiscal year.  In addition to any other penalty or             

20  forfeiture under this section, if at any time the department                

21  determines that 1 or more of the following has occurred in a                

22  district, the district shall forfeit in the current fiscal year             

23  beginning in the next payment to be calculated by the department            

24  a proportion of the funds due to the district under this act that           

25  is equal to the proportion below the required minimum number of             

26  hours of pupil instruction under subsection (3), as specified in            

27  the following:                                                              

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

2   the required minimum number of hours of pupil instruction under             

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

4   subsection (4).                                                             

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

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

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

8   including hours counted under subsection (4).                               

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

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

11  the following guidelines, and a district shall maintain records             

12  to substantiate its compliance with the following guidelines:               

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

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

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

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

17  instruction, including up to 2 study halls.                                 

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

19  a block schedule may be considered instructional time, unless               

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

27  cooperative education program or a special education pupil cannot           

1   receive the required minimum number of hours of pupil instruction           

2   solely because of travel time between instructional sites during            

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

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

5   the purpose of determining whether the pupil is receiving the               

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

7   if a district demonstrates to the satisfaction of the department            

8   that the travel time limitation under this subdivision would                

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

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

11  this purpose.                                                               

12      (8) The department shall apply the guidelines under                         

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

14  pupils.                                                                     

15      (9) Upon application by the district for a particular fiscal                

16  year, the superintendent may waive for a district the minimum               

17  number of hours of pupil instruction requirement of subsection              

18  (3) for a department-approved alternative education program.  If            

19  a district applies for and receives a waiver under this                     

20  subsection and complies with the terms of the waiver, for the               

21  fiscal year covered by the waiver the district is not subject to            

22  forfeiture under this section for the specific program covered by           

23  the waiver.                                                                 

24      (10) A district may count up to 51 hours of professional                    

25  development for teachers, including the 5 hours of online                   

26  professional development provided by the Michigan virtual                   

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

1   district that elects to use this exception shall notify the                 

2   department of its election.