School finance-ELL programs.

WORKING DRAFT
2011
STATE OF
WYOMING
11LSO-0505

HOUSE BILL
NO.
HB0192

School finance-
ELL
programs.

Sponsored by:
Representative(s) Gingery and Petroff

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to
school finance; establishing supplemental financial assistance for schools serving large concentrations

of students
with limited
english
proficiency
; delegating duties to the department of education; granting rulemaking authority; providing an appropriation;
and providing for
e
ffective date
s
.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of
Wyoming
:

Section 1.

W.S. 21
‑
13
‑
336 is created to read:

21
‑
13
‑
33
6
.

Supplemental financial assistance for
schools serving
students
identified
with limited English proficiency.

(a)

S
upplemental financial assistance for
programs addressing the needs of children identified with limited proficiency in English is
established to augment resources within the education resource block grant model
for programs serving at-risk student populations.
Supplemental assistance under this section shall be for
school districts with schools
located in the district which serve
significantly large concentrations of children identified with limited proficiency in English.

(b)

Each school district
with at least one (1) school located within the district having a concentration
of ten percent (10%) or greater
of identified student populations with limit
ed
English proficiency
,
as co
mputed
in the school year immediately preceding the date of application, may
apply to the department of education for financial assistance under this section
.
Application shall be submitted by the district to the department
on or before April 15 of the school year immediately preceding the school year for which financial assistance is requested
, documenting those schools within the district having concentrated populations required under this section and including a plan for expenditure of grant amounts for
teachers certified to provide instruction in programs serving the identified limited English proficient student population.

(c)

The department shall notify each district of its eligibility to participate in the financial assistance program on or before May 1 of the school year preceding the school year for which application is made, together with any estimated amount to be made available to the district for the applicable school year. The department shall distribute assistance to each eligible district on or before August 15 of the applicable school year for which assistance is requested.

(d)

Financial assistance under this section shall be based upon prior year school level attendance and configuration reports submitted by each eligible school district pursuant to W.S. 21
‑
13
‑
309(m)(iv). Grant amounts shall be computed by the department for the eligible applicant district as if the education resource block grant model contained the following component for
ELL
(English language learner)
students in addition to the component amount resourced for ELL students within the block grant model,
prorated up and down from the
specified
FTE position level similar to computational operation of other components within the block grant model:

(i)

One
(1)
FTE position
for every
one hundred (
100
)
ELL students;

(i
i
)

"FTE" as used in this section shall be as defined in ATTACHMENT "A"
pursuant to
W.S. 21
‑
13
‑
101(a)(xvii).

(e)

Financial assistance to each qualifying applicant school district shall be made by the department from amounts appropriated by the legislature to the foundation program account for purposes of the program established by this section and shall be in addition to the foundation program amount computed for that district under W.S. 21
‑
13
‑
309(p). If there is an insufficient amount within the foundation program account from amounts appropriated by the legislature for financial assistance under this section for any school year, the department shall make a pro rata reduction in financial assistance payments among all qualifying districts for that school year. District expenditures of amounts distributed under this section shall be solely for
teachers certified in instruction for programs serving limited English proficient student populations as identified in the application submitted by the district under subsection
(b) of this section. The department may withhold a portion or the entire amount to be distributed to any district under this section for noncompliance with program documentation required to be submitted by the applicant district.

(f)

Prior to June 30 of the school year for which a grant is awarded under this section, e
ach
recipient
district shall report to the department of education on expenditures of amounts distributed under this section together with additional information required by the department
.
The department shall compile the information reported by
recipient
districts and
submit
the compilation to the join
t education interim committee.

Section 2.

For the period commencing July 1, 2011, and ending June 30, 2012, one million one hundred thousand dollars ($1,100,000.00) is appropriated from the school foundation program account to the department of education for
supplemental assistance established under W.S. 21
‑
13
‑
336, as created by section 1 o
f this
act
.

Section 3.

The department of education shall promulgate rules and regulations
in sufficient time
to implement W.S. 21
‑
13
‑
336(b) and (c) as created by section 1 of this act
for school year 2011-2012
.

Section 4.

(a)

Except as provided by subsection (b) of this section, this act is effective July 1, 2011.

(b)

Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, section 3 of this act is effective immediately upon co
m
pletion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constit
u
tion.

(END)

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HB0192