S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  6861

                       2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              April 5, 2011
                               ___________

Introduced  by M. of A. GANTT -- read once and referred to the Committee
  on Education

AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to making maintenance  of
  effort payments be applied at a uniform rate among certain cities

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision 5-b of section 2576 of the  education  law,  as
added  by  section  9 of part B of chapter 57 of the laws of 2007, para-
graphs c and d as amended by section 29 of part A of chapter 57  of  the
laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
  5-b. a. For the purposes of this subdivision, the terms:
  (i)  "city funds" shall mean funds of each city having a population of
one hundred twenty-five thousand or more inhabitants and less  than  one
million inhabitants derived from any source except funds contained with-
in  the capital budget, funds from county sales tax revenues shared with
such city, funds derived from any federal source and funds derived  from
any  state  or private sources over which the city has no discretion, as
defined pursuant  to  regulations  developed  by  the  commissioner  and
approved by the director of the budget.
  (ii)  "city amount" shall mean the total amount of expenditures funded
by city funds for the support of the city school district of  each  city
having a population of one hundred twenty-five thousand or more inhabit-
ants  and  less  than  one  million  inhabitants[, not including]. "CITY
AMOUNT" SHALL NOT INCLUDE ANY city payments to bond or note holders  for
debt  service  payments of such district, as contained within the budget
as adopted by such city AND SUCH CITY PAYMENTS SHALL NOT BE INCLUDED  IN
ANY CITY'S MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT PAYMENT CALCULATION.
  (iii) "base year" shall mean the fiscal year immediately preceding the
fiscal  year  for  which  the budget referred to in subparagraph (ii) of
this paragraph is adopted. The initial base year  shall  be  the  fiscal
year ending June thirtieth, two thousand [seven] TEN.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD10277-02-1
              

A. 6861                             2

  (IV) "PER STUDENT RATE" SHALL MEAN THE CITY AMOUNT IN THE INITIAL BASE
YEAR  DIVIDED  BY  THE  NUMBER  OF  STUDENTS  ENROLLED IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS
LOCATED WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES OF THE CITY, AS REPORTED BY THE DEPARTMENT
FOR THE TWO THOUSAND NINE--TWO THOUSAND TEN SCHOOL YEAR.
  (V)  "MINIMUM PER STUDENT RATE" SHALL MEAN THE LOWEST PER STUDENT RATE
OF ALL CITIES SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
  b. The city amount FOR ALL CITIES SUBJECT TO  THIS  SUBDIVISION  shall
[not  be  less than the city amount appropriated in the base year deter-
mined at the time of adoption of the budget for the ensuing fiscal year,
and shall not be less than the city amount expended  in  the  base  year
determined  as of the end of the school year], AT A MINIMUM, BE EQUAL TO
THE MINIMUM PER STUDENT  RATE  MULTIPLIED  BY  THE  NUMBER  OF  STUDENTS
ENROLLED  IN  PUBLIC SCHOOLS LOCATED WITHIN THE CITY, AS REPORTED BY THE
DEPARTMENT FOR THE TWO THOUSAND NINE--TWO THOUSAND TEN SCHOOL YEAR.   NO
CITY  SHALL  BE REQUIRED TO EXPEND MORE THAN THE CITY AMOUNT. NOTHING IN
THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO PREVENT  A  CITY  FROM  VOLUNTARILY
EXPENDING AN AMOUNT GREATER THAN THEIR CITY AMOUNT.  [Provided, however,
in  the  event] IF the total amount of city funds relied upon to balance
[such] THE CITY'S budget IN ANY GIVEN  YEAR  is  lower  than  the  total
amount  of  city  funds  appropriated BY SUCH CITY in the CITY'S INITIAL
base year, as determined at the time of adoption  of  such  budget,  the
city  amount  may be reduced by up to the same percentage as the overall
percentage decrease in city funds between the INITIAL base year and  the
ensuing fiscal year.
  c.  Upon  the  enactment of a city budget, for the two thousand [nine]
ELEVEN--two thousand [ten] TWELVE school year budget and annually there-
after, the chief executive officer of the city, as defined  pursuant  to
subdivision five-a of section 2.00 of the local finance law, shall annu-
ally  certify  to  the commissioner, in a form prescribed by the commis-
sioner upon approval of the director of  the  budget,  as  to  the  city
amount  in  such  budget,  the city amount in the INITIAL base year, and
that the city amount appropriated in such budget is in  compliance  with
paragraph b of this subdivision.
  d.  The  school  district  audit report certified to by an independent
certified public accountant or an  independent  accountant  pursuant  to
section  twenty-one hundred sixteen-a of this title for the two thousand
eight--two thousand nine school  year  budget  and  annually  thereafter
shall include a certification by the accountant, in a form prescribed by
the  commissioner upon approval of the director of the budget, as to the
city amount expended in the school year covered by  such  audit  report,
the  city  amount  in the [prior school] INITIAL BASE year, THE SCHOOL'S
PER STUDENT RATE, THE MINIMUM PER STUDENT RATE THAT WILL BE  APPLIED  TO
THE  SCHOOL'S CALCULATION OF ITS MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT PAYMENT, and that
the city amount expended in the school year covered by such audit report
is in compliance with paragraph b of this subdivision.
  S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.