FISCAL NOTE
Date Requested: January 24, 2023
Time Requested: 04:46 PM |
| Agency: |
Education, WV Department of |
|---|
| CBD Number: |
Version: |
Bill Number: |
Resolution Number: |
| 2042 |
Introduced |
HB2997 |
|
|---|
| CBD Subject: |
Finance and Administration |
|---|
|
FUND(S):
0313
Sources of Revenue:
General Fund N/A
Legislation creates:
Increases Existing Expenses
Fiscal Note Summary
Effect this measure will have on costs and revenues of state government.
This legislation, in its current form, will have fiscal impact on the State. The estimated cost to the State of allowing all children of compulsory school age (whether or not they have been enrolled in a public school for 45 days) is $160,560,225. This is a maximum cost estimate for this category of children as the West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) does not have sufficient data to estimate the number of nonpublic students who may choose to participate in the program once participation is expanded. To the extent that the bill makes children who are not of compulsory school age eligible for the HOPE Scholarship, the WVDE does not have sufficient data to estimate the number of children who would be eligible and/or the number of children in that category who would participate. Including children who are not of compulsory school age for eligibility would likely substantially increase the cost to the State, in excess of $160,560,225 provided in this fiscal note for children of compulsory school age.
Fiscal Note Detail
| Effect of Proposal |
Fiscal Year |
2023
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
2024
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
Fiscal Year
(Upon Full
Implementation) |
| 1. Estmated Total Cost |
0 |
0 |
160,560,225 |
| Personal Services |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Current Expenses |
0 |
0 |
160,560,225 |
| 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):
This proposed legislation redefines “eligible recipient” to mean “a child who is a resident of this state.” Under current statute, Hope Scholarship eligibility does not expand to include all children who are of compulsory school age until July 1, 2026, at the earliest. Upon passage, this proposed legislation would accelerate the full implementation of the Hope Scholarship statute for compulsory school age children by approximately three (3) fiscal years.
Current statute provides for an annual appropriation to the WVDE in an amount equal to the greater of no less than two percent of net public school enrollment adjusted for state aid purposes, or the total number of eligible Hope Scholarship applicants received by the Treasurer, if available, multiplied by the prior year's statewide average net state aid allotted per pupil. This legislation does not revise that portion of the statute. Therefore, the WVDE’s appropriation request for the 2023-24 fiscal year would not be impacted by the proposed legislation. However, as currently ineligible homeschool and private school students began participating in the Hope Scholarship program, additional appropriations would be required to meet that demand. The WVDE does not have sufficient data to determine how many homeschool and private school students would choose to begin participating in the program once eligibility is expanded to all children who are of compulsory school age.
To estimate the total cost to the State for this proposed legislation insofar as it would expand eligibility to all compulsory school age children, the WVDE used current available homeschool and private school enrollment data to determine the total number of students who may become eligible if the legislation is enacted and implemented. Current data shows there are approximately 11,753 students in nonpublic/private schools and 22,228 students in a homeschool setting for a total of 33,981 students who would become eligible for the program next year. The statewide average net state aid allotted per pupil for the 2022-23 fiscal year is $4,725.07. Therefore, the estimated maximum cost to the State for this proposed legislation is $160,560,225.
Please note that the above estimate is not being reduced by the number of current homeschool and private school students who are already receiving the Hope Scholarship. At the time of this fiscal note request, the Treasurer’s Office had not yet provided that information to us in order to incorporate it into the estimate. It is also important to note that this estimate does not include any additional cost to the State for existing public school students already eligible under current statute who may decide to take advantage of the program. Those costs are already included in the WVDE’s annual appropriation request based upon the funding requirements noted above.
Additionally, insofar as the bill opens up eligibility for the HOPE Scholarship to all children who are not of compulsory school age, the above estimate does not project that additional cost. The Department lacks the necessary data to make such a projection. However, it is likely that the cost to the State to make that category of children eligible would be substantially in excess of the $160,560,225 figure in this fiscal note.
Memorandum
Under the current statute, the Hope Scholarship does not contemplate being made available to all children who are residents of the state. Instead, full participation only applies to a child “if he or she is enrolled, eligible to be enrolled, or required to be enrolled in a kindergarten program or public elementary or secondary school program in this state at the time of application.” Changing the definition of “eligible recipient” to broadly mean any child who is a resident of the State may create instances where applications are submitted for children who have not reached the age of compulsory school attendance (i.e., a two-year old).
Person submitting Fiscal Note: Samuel E. Pauley
Email Address: sepauley@k12.wv.us