FISCAL NOTE

Date Requested: February 18, 2022
Time Requested: 12:52 PM
Agency: Education, WV Department of
CBD Number: Version: Bill Number: Resolution Number:
1222 Amendment HB4415
CBD Subject: Education (Higher)


FUND(S):

0317/0313

Sources of Revenue:

General Fund N/A

Legislation creates:

Creates New Expense, Increases Existing Expenses



Fiscal Note Summary


Effect this measure will have on costs and revenues of state government.


The proposed legislation is expected to increase costs to the State due to private and parochial school students enrolled in residential programs currently not covered through the Public School Support Plan (PSSP). County boards of education will directly lose state aid funding for public school students (see memorandum for exceptions), but will also have to pay for private/parochial students for whom they currently receive no state aid funding. In addition, there would be an additional cost to the State for the creation and operation of the Katherine Johnson Academy.



Fiscal Note Detail


Effect of Proposal Fiscal Year
2022
Increase/Decrease
(use"-")
2023
Increase/Decrease
(use"-")
Fiscal Year
(Upon Full
Implementation)
1. Estmated Total Cost 0 0 0
Personal Services 0 0 0
Current Expenses 0 0 0
Repairs and Alterations 0 0 0
Assets 0 0 0
Other 0 0 0
2. Estimated Total Revenues 0 0 0


Explanation of above estimates (including long-range effect):


The proposed legislation is anticipated to have a cost to both the State and to the county boards of education. The cost to the State is due to amounts which will be included in the appropriation for students enrolled in a residential academy program who are currently private or parochial students. There is no current cost under the Public School Support Plan (PSSP) for private or parochial students - only those students enrolled in public schools. For each private and parochial student enrolled in a residential program, the State will incur an additional cost of $4,524.84 (based on the 2021-22 statewide average state aid per pupil). We are unable to predict the number of private and parochial students who will enroll in a residential program. After the initial year of implementation, there will be no additional cost to the State for existing public school students, as the funding for residential academy students will simply shift from the PSSP to a separate line item appropriation. County boards of education will lose state aid funding for their students who enroll in residential academy programs, at an estimated $4,524.84 per student. Since they will no longer be included in net enrollment moving forward, the amount will vary by county ranging from $0 in Doddridge, Tyler, and Marshall Counties to $6,114.58 in Clay County. In addition, the proposed legislation requires county boards of education to pay 25% of the County average state aid per pupil into the Katherine Johnson Scholarship Fund, or an estimated $1,131.21 per student (based on the 2021-22 year) for any student enrolled in a "local secondary school in their county" which includes public, private and parochial school students. This amount would range from $0 in Doddridge, Tyler, and Marshall Counties to $1,528.65 in Clay County. County boards of education do not receive state aid funding for students enrolled in private or parochial schools, so they will be required to use state aid funding paid to the county (for students who actually are enrolled in the public schools of their county) to pay for private and parochial students to enroll in commuter academy programs. County boards whose local share does not exceed the total basic program allowance of the county (currently this affects Doddridge, Tyler, and Marshall Counties - *see memorandum below) will also lose 25% of the county per pupil funding for the public school students from their county who enroll in a commuter program. It is unclear how many students will enroll in the commuter academy programs annually, making it difficult to calculate an estimated statewide total loss in state aid funding to the county boards of education. There would be a cost to the State for the creation and expenses of the Katherine Johnson Academy (Academy). Example expenses of the Academy include but are not limited to: travel and other expenses for trustees, the salary and benefits of the chief executive officer of the academy, the salary and benefits of any other "necessary personnel," and any general operating expenses. Since it does not appear under the proposed legislation that the Academy will be part of the West Virginia Department of Education, we are unable to predict the potential salary level of the new staff and have not attempted to estimate the operational costs for the new Academy.



Memorandum


The definition of "county per-pupil allocation" is vague. For purposes of this fiscal note, the WVDE utilized the net state aid amount per pupil, which is the amount that the State contributes to the education per pupil in each county. This amount is taken from Step 10 of the PSSP. The amounts would be significantly different if the intent was to use the total foundation allowance per pupil (Step 8 of PSSP), as that amount includes local regular levy tax dollars as well as the State's contribution. Using net state aid funding per pupil for the county per pupil allocation could result in zero funding into the scholarship fund for students who reside in a county where the local share exceeds the total basic program allowance of the county. Currently, Doddridge, Tyler, and Marshall are the only counties whose local share exceeds the total basic program allowance. Therefore, under the current language in this proposed bill, Doddridge, Tyler, and Marshall will not be required to transfer any amount to the Katherine Johnson Scholarship Fund for students who enroll in a commuter program. Although the costs that are covered are the same (tuition, fees, and books), the Katherine Johnson Academy Fund scholarship caps are different for residential and commuter students. Additionally, the cap for commuter students is currently written as "25 percent of the county per-pupil allocation." Using net state aid funding per pupil for the county per pupil allocation could result in $0 being awarded to a commuter student from Doddridge, Tyler and Marshall Counties and up to $1,528.65 being awarded to a commuter student from Clay County. The county of residence could harm certain students who would like to participate in this program.



    Person submitting Fiscal Note: Samuel E. Pauley
    Email Address: sepauley@k12.wv.us