AN ACT CONCERNING INTERDISTRICT MAGNET SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL READINESS.

This bill limits the law requiring districts not participating in an interdistrict magnet school to pay for students to attend that school. It does this by requiring a magnet school's operator to give preference to students from districts that do not participate in any interdistrict magnet schools or in the Open Choice program, rather than just the school in question. It limits current law's tuition formula for these students to tuition charged by interdistrict magnet schools operated by regional education service centers (RESCs). The bill also sets requirements for districts to maintain participation in an interdistrict magnet school. It also removes a reference to participating districts to conform to a 2007 change.

For FYs 08 and 09, the bill exempts the Bloomfield interdistrict magnet school from existing statutory provisions (1) limiting the number of students from a participating town to 75% and (2) requiring racial minorities to comprise between 25% and 75% of the student body. However, for FY 08, it reduces its grant by half.

Finally, the bill sets the per-child cost of the state Department of Education's (SDE's) school readiness program for FY 09; increasing it to $ 8,025 from $ 6,925 per child.

EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage, except for the provision on magnet school students from nonparticipating districts, which is effective July 1, 2008.

Under current law, after accommodating students from participating districts in accordance with enrollment agreements, an interdistrict magnet school with unused capacity can directly enroll interested students. Students from districts that are not participating in the school must be given preference. The bill specifies that preference must instead be given to students from districts that are not participating in any interdistrict magnet schools or the Open Choice interdistrict student attendance program, to an extent determined by the education commissioner.

By law, the nonparticipating board of education otherwise responsible for educating these students must contribute funds to support the magnet school's operation in an amount equal to the per-student tuition, if any, the school charges participating districts. For FY 09, this tuition must equal 75% of the difference between the school's average per-pupil expenditure for the prior fiscal year and the magnet school per-pupil state grant. If the board fails to pay the tuition, the education commissioner can withhold ECS funds from the district, up to the amount of the unpaid tuition, and transfer it to the fiscal agent for the magnet school as a supplementary operating grant.

The bill limits this payment to tuition a RESC-operated magnet school charges a board and, for tuition calculation purposes, requires adding any revenue from other sources, calculated on a per-pupil basis, to the state subsidy.

Further, the bill requires participating districts to provide opportunities for their students to attend an interdistrict magnet school in a number at least equal to (1) the number specified in any written agreement with an interdistrict magnet school operator or (2) the average number of students that the participating district enrolled in the magnet school during the previous three school years.

Yea

Nay

(03/18/2008)

Yea

Nay

(03/28/2008)