§302B-12  Funding and finance.  (a)  Beginning with fiscal year 2010-2011, and each fiscal year thereafter, the non-facility general fund per-pupil funding request for charter school students shall be the same as the general fund per-pupil amount to the department in the most recently approved executive budget recommendation for the department, as set forth in paragraph (2); provided that:

     (1)  The general fund per-pupil funding request shall be based upon reasonable projected enrollment figures for all charter schools; and

     (2)  The general fund per-pupil request for each regular education and special education student shall:

         (A)  Include all general fund regular education cost categories, including comprehensive school support services, but excluding special education services, adult education, and the after-school plus program; provided that these services are provided and funded by the department; and

         (B)  Exclude fringe benefit costs and debt service.

     (b)  Fringe benefit costs for charter school employees, regardless of the payroll system utilized by a charter school, shall be included in the department of budget and finance's annual budget request.  No fringe benefit costs shall be charged directly to or deducted from the charter school per-pupil allocations.

     The legislature shall make an appropriation based upon the budget request; provided that the legislature may make additional appropriations for facility and other costs.

     The governor, pursuant to chapter 37, may impose restrictions or reductions on charter school appropriations similar to those imposed on other public schools.

     (c)  Charter schools shall be eligible for all federal financial support to the same extent as all other public schools.  The department shall provide the office with all state-level federal grant proposals submitted by the department that include charter schools as potential recipients and timely reports on state-level federal grants received for which charter schools may apply or are entitled to receive.  Federal funds received by the department for charter schools shall be transferred to the office for distribution to charter schools in accordance with the federal requirements.  If administrative services related to federal grants and subsidies are provided to the charter school by the department, the charter school shall reimburse the department for the actual costs of the administrative services in an amount that shall not exceed six and one-half per cent of the charter school's federal grants and subsidies.

     Any charter school shall be eligible to receive any supplemental federal grant or award for which any other public school may submit a proposal, or any supplemental federal grants limited to charter schools; provided that if department administrative services, including funds management, budgetary, fiscal accounting, or other related services, are provided with respect to these supplemental grants, the charter school shall reimburse the department for the actual costs of the administrative services in an amount that shall not exceed six and one-half per cent of the supplemental grant for which the services are used.

     All additional funds generated by the local school boards, that are not from a supplemental grant, shall be held separate from allotted funds and may be expended at the discretion of the local school boards.

     (d)  The office shall calculate a general fund per-pupil amount based upon the amount of general funds appropriated by the legislature and released by the governor and the projected enrollment amount used to calculate the general funds appropriated pursuant to subsection (a); provided that:

     (1)  Per-pupil distributions to the charter schools pursuant to subsection (e) shall be based upon the per-pupil amount as calculated by the office pursuant to this subsection.  The per-pupil distributions shall be deposited into the charter schools account established by subsection (i); and

     (2)  In years when the projected enrollment used to calculate the per-pupil amount pursuant to this subsection exceeds the total actual enrollment as reported by the charter schools as of October 15, the excess funds shall remain in the state treasury in the charter schools account;

         (A)  General funds appropriated pursuant to this section remaining in the charter schools account within the state treasury at the end of each fiscal year and in excess of $5,000,000 shall lapse to the credit of the state general fund; and

         (B)  General funds remaining in the charter schools account in the state treasury appropriated pursuant to this section that are less than $5,000,000 shall carry over to subsequent years to be used to provide per-pupil funding in years when the projected enrollment amount is less than the actual per-pupil enrollment reported by the charter schools on October 15 of each year.

     The office shall submit a report to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to each regular session that contains each charter school's current school year projection that is used to submit the budget request, the updated May 15 enrollment projection, the actual October 15 enrollment count, the office's reviewed and verified enrollment count, and the November 15 enrollment count.  This report shall also provide an accounting of the use, if any, of state general funds subject to paragraph (2)(B).

     (e)  To enable charter schools to access state funding prior to the start of each school year, foster their fiscal planning, enhance their accountability, and avoid over-allocating general funds to charter schools based on self-reported enrollment projections, the office shall:

     (1)  Provide sixty per cent of a charter school's per-pupil allocation based on the charter school's projected student enrollment no later than July 20 of each fiscal year; provided that the charter school shall have submitted to the office a projected student enrollment no later than May 15 of each year;

     (2)  Provide an additional thirty per cent of a charter school's per-pupil allocation no later than December 1 of each year, based on the October 15 student enrollment, as reviewed and verified by the office, only to schools in compliance with the office financial reporting requirements; and

     (3)  Retain no more than the balance of the remaining ten per cent of a charter school's per-pupil allocation, as a contingency balance to ensure fiscal accountability and compliance, no later than June 30 of each year;

provided that the panel may make adjustments in allocations based on noncompliance with board policies made in the board's capacity as the state education agency, department directives made in the department's capacity as the state education agency, the office's administrative procedures, and board-approved accountability requirements.

     (f)  Any check transferring a per-pupil allocation from the office to a charter school under this section shall be co-signed by the executive director and an authorized agent of the charter school review panel.

     (g)  The department shall provide appropriate transitional resources to a conversion charter school for its first year of operation as a charter school based upon the department's allocation to the school for the year prior to the conversion.

     (h)  No start-up charter school or conversion charter school may assess tuition.

     (i)  There is created in the treasury of the State, as a separate account, the charter schools account, into which shall be deposited per-pupil distributions in accordance with subsection (d). [L 2006, c 298, pt of §2; am L 2007, c 115, §12; am L 2009, c 86, §5; am L 2010, c 144, §8]