Senate Bill sb1710
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 1710
By Senator Webster
12-1223A-01 See HB
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to school district performance;
3 providing a short title; amending s. 229.57,
4 F.S.; requiring the designation and publication
5 of district performance grades; amending s.
6 236.02, F.S.; revising minimum requirements of
7 the Florida Education Finance Program to
8 include minimum classroom expenditure
9 requirements and associated reporting; creating
10 s. 236.08102, F.S.; authorizing the Legislature
11 to require a school district that fails to meet
12 minimum academic performance standards to meet
13 district minimum classroom expenditure
14 requirements; providing for monitoring;
15 requiring reports; amending s. 237.041, F.S.;
16 requiring a district's annual budget to include
17 provision for required minimum classroom
18 expenditure requirements; amending s. 237.081,
19 F.S.; requiring the advertisement of the
20 tentative school district budget to include
21 notice of minimum classroom expenditure
22 requirements; providing an effective date.
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24 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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26 Section 1. Short title.--This act shall be known and
27 may be cited as the "Dollars to the Classroom Act of 2001."
28 Section 2. Subsection (16) is added to section 229.57,
29 Florida Statutes, to read:
30 229.57 Student assessment program.--
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 1710
12-1223A-01 See HB
1 (16) DISTRICT PERFORMANCE GRADE.--Beginning with the
2 2000-2001 school year's student and school performance data,
3 the annual report required by subsection (6) shall include
4 district performance grades, which shall consist of weighted
5 district average grades, by level, for all elementary schools,
6 middle schools, and high schools in the district. A district's
7 weighted average grade shall be calculated by weighting
8 individual school grades determined pursuant to subsection (7)
9 by school enrollment.
10 Section 3. Subsection (8) is added to section 236.02,
11 Florida Statutes, to read:
12 236.02 Minimum requirements of the Florida Education
13 Finance Program.--Each district which participates in the
14 state appropriations for the Florida Education Finance Program
15 shall provide evidence of its effort to maintain an adequate
16 school program throughout the district and shall meet at least
17 the following requirements:
18 (8) MINIMUM CLASSROOM EXPENDITURE
19 REQUIREMENTS.--Comply with the minimum classroom expenditure
20 requirements and associated reporting pursuant to s.
21 236.08102.
22 Section 4. Section 236.08102, Florida Statutes, is
23 created to read:
24 236.08102 School district minimum classroom
25 expenditure requirements.--
26 (1) Beginning in fiscal year 2001-2002, the
27 Legislature may require any school district that fails to meet
28 minimum academic performance standards to increase emphasis on
29 classroom instruction activities using operating funds,
30 including, but not limited to, those provided for the
31 operation of schools pursuant to s. 236.081.
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 1710
12-1223A-01 See HB
1 (2) For the purpose of implementing the provisions of
2 this section, the Legislature shall prescribe minimum academic
3 performance standards and minimum classroom expenditure
4 requirements for districts not meeting such minimum academic
5 performance standards in the General Appropriations Act.
6 (a) Minimum academic performance standards may be
7 based on, but are not limited to, district performance grades
8 determined pursuant to s. 229.57(16).
9 (b) School district minimum classroom expenditure
10 requirements shall be calculated pursuant to subsection (3).
11 (3)(a) Annually the Department of Education shall
12 calculate for each school district:
13 1. Total K-12 operating expenditures, which are
14 defined as the amount of total general fund expenditures for
15 K-12 programs as reported in accordance with the accounts and
16 codes prescribed in the most recent issuance of the Department
17 of Education publication entitled "Financial and Program Cost
18 Accounting and Reporting for Florida Schools" and as included
19 in the annual financial report submitted to the Commissioner
20 of Education, less the pupil transportation revenue allocation
21 from the state appropriation for that purpose, amounts
22 transferred to other funds, and increases to the amount of the
23 general fund unreserved ending fund balance when the total
24 unreserved ending fund balance is in excess of 5 percent of
25 the total general fund revenues.
26 2. Expenditures for classroom instruction, which shall
27 be the sum of the general fund expenditures for K-12
28 instruction and instructional staff training for basic skills.
29 (b) The department shall annually calculate for each
30 district, and for the entire state, the percentage of
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 1710
12-1223A-01 See HB
1 classroom expenditures to total operating expenditures as
2 calculated pursuant to subparagraphs (a)1. and 2.
3 (4) In order for the Department of Education to
4 monitor the implementation of this section, each school
5 district that is required to increase emphasis on classroom
6 activities from operating funds pursuant to subsection (1)
7 shall submit to the department the following two reports in a
8 format determined by the department:
9 (a) An initial report, which shall include the
10 proposed budget actions identified for increased classroom
11 expenditures, a description of how such actions are designed
12 to improve student achievement, and a copy of the published
13 statement required by s. 237.081(3). This report shall be
14 submitted within 30 days after final budget approval as
15 provided in s. 200.065.
16 (b) A final report, prepared at the end of each fiscal
17 year, which shall include, but is not limited to, information
18 that clearly indicates the degree of each district's
19 compliance or noncompliance with the requirements of this
20 section. If not fully compliant, the district shall include a
21 statement that has been adopted at a public hearing and signed
22 by the district superintendent of schools and district school
23 board members and that explains why the requirements of this
24 section have not been met.
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26 The department shall provide annual summaries of these two
27 reports to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
28 Speaker of the House of Representatives.
29 Section 5. Section 237.041, Florida Statutes, is
30 amended to read:
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 1710
12-1223A-01 See HB
1 237.041 Form of annual budget required.--An annual
2 budget is required to be prepared and adopted by the school
3 board of each district and submitted to the Department of
4 Education for examination each year on or before the date
5 provided in regulations of the state board. Such annual budget
6 shall be prepared in accordance with regulations prescribed by
7 the state board and the provisions of s. 200.065. The annual
8 budget submitted by each school board shall be consistent
9 with, and contribute to, the implementation of a planned
10 long-range school program for the district and required
11 minimum classroom expenditure requirements pursuant to s.
12 236.08102 and the General Appropriations Act.
13 Section 6. Subsections (3) and (4) of section 237.081,
14 Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (4) and (5),
15 respectively, and a new subsection (3) is added to said
16 section, to read:
17 237.081 Public hearings; budgets to be submitted to
18 Department of Education.--
19 (3) The advertisement of a district that has been
20 required by the Legislature to increase classroom expenditures
21 pursuant to s. 236.08102 must include the following statement:
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23 "This proposed budget reflects an increase in classroom
24 expenditures as a percent of total current operating
25 expenditures of XX percent over the (previous fiscal year)
26 fiscal year. This increase in classroom expenditures is
27 required by the Legislature because the district has performed
28 below the required performance standard on XX of XX student
29 performance standards for the (previous school year) school
30 year. In order to achieve the legislatively required level of
31 classroom expenditures as a percentage of total operating
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 1710
12-1223A-01 See HB
1 expenditures, the proposed budget includes an increase in
2 overall classroom expenditures of $XX,XXX,XXX above the amount
3 spent for this same purpose during the (previous fiscal year)
4 fiscal year. In order to achieve improved student academic
5 performance, this proposed increase is being budgeted for the
6 following activities: (list activities and amounts budgeted)".
7 Section 7. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
8 law.
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11 LEGISLATIVE SUMMARY
12 Creates the "Dollars to the Classroom Act of 2001."
Requires the designation and publication of district
13 performance grades. Revises minimum requirements of the
Florida Education Finance Program to include minimum
14 classroom expenditure requirements and associated
reporting. Authorizes the Legislature to require a school
15 district that fails to meet minimum academic performance
standards to meet district minimum classroom expenditure
16 requirements. Requires monitoring and reports. Requires a
district's annual budget to include provision for
17 required minimum classroom expenditure requirements.
Requires the advertisement of the tentative school
18 district budget to include notice of minimum classroom
expenditure requirements.
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