| TO: | Honorable Florence Shapiro, Chair, Senate Committee on Education |
| FROM: | John S. O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | SB574 by Jackson, Mike (Relating to an exception to the wealth per student limitation for school districts that, as a result of natural disasters, are suffering financial hardship.), As Introduced |
The potential impact on equalized funding requirements and policies affecting public education would vary but could be significant based on the number and circumstances of districts that are located in disaster areas declared by the governor under Chapter 418, Government Code and that experience qualifying financial hardship. The bill would exempt a district that would otherwise be subject to wealth equalization under Chapter 41, Education Code from recapture until all levels of governmental recovery efforts were completed and the commissioner of education found the financial situation of the affected district to be equal to or better than it was prior to the disaster.
Because the provisions of the bill would apply retroactively to disasters occurring before the effective date, it is likely that school districts located in counties included in disaster declarations relating to hurricane impact that occurred early in fiscal year 2009 would be among the districts seeking exemption from recapture beginning in fiscal year 2010. The continuing disaster declaration related to that hurricane impact presently includes all or part of 570 school districts, including 81 that would be subject to wealth equalization under current law in fiscal year 2010. The potential impact on equalized funding requirements beginning in fiscal year 2010 cannot be reliably determined at the present time and would depend specifically upon the number and circumstances of the districts with qualifying financial hardship under criteria to be adopted by the commissioner of education. Implications for equalized funding requirements and policies would continue until completion of recovery efforts and determination by the commissioner of an equal or better financial condition than prior to the disaster. Additional impact for fiscal year 2010 – 2014 and continuing impact in subsequent years with regard to equalization would depend upon the extent of disaster declarations and resulting school district financial hardship situations incurred in those years.
| Source Agencies: |
| LBB Staff: | JOB, JSp, JGM
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