2001 SESSION

01-2308

04/09

HOUSE BILL 1272-FN-A-LOCAL

COMMITTEE: Finance

ANALYSIS

This bill establishes a special education trust fund in the office of the state treasurer to be funded by moneys from the education trust fund for the purpose of distributing special education funds to cities and towns.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

01-2308

04/09

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand One

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 Findings. The general court finds that:

I. The largest unpredictable expense in a municipality's school budget is the special education costs for educationally disabled children. Other expenses in the budget are subject to the municipality's philosophy and priority list and can be raised and lowered according to voter desires and available resources. Small towns that have even a small number of severely disabled pupils can find themselves having to cut back on valued education services, not because of lack of interest or support, but because the town simply has no more money.

II. This situation can be addressed by creating a statewide risk pool for high-end special education services and a means to access this pool within the special education process. When the local budget is once again predictable, the local school district can again itself determine and allocate funds for what it defines as a free and appropriate public education for its own pupils.

2 New Subparagraph; State Treasurer and State Accounts; Application of Receipts. Amend RSA 6:12, I by inserting after subparagraph (iiii) the following new subparagraph:

(jjjj) Moneys collected by the state board of education under RSA 186-C:18 for the purpose of distributing state aid to the school districts for special education.

3 Special Education; State Aid. RSA 186-C:18 is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:

186-C:18 State Aid for Special Education.

I. The state board of education, through the commissioner of the department of education, shall distribute aid available under this section as an entitlement to any school district which has special education pupils for whose costs they are responsible.

II. The state treasurer shall establish a special education trust account in the treasury. Moneys in this fund shall be nonlapsing and shall be used to distribute special education grants to cities and towns as set forth in this section. The moneys in this fund shall not be used, transferred, or diverted to any other purpose. Beginning July 1, 2002, and every fiscal year thereafter, each city or town shall transfer an amount equal to $100 per pupil from the adequate education grant funds received in that year into the special education trust account. This amount shall be based on the average daily membership in residence, as defined in RSA 189:1-d, IV, as of October 1 of each school year.

III.(a) The individual education planning team for a pupil may access special education trust funds for expenses that exceed $10,000 per pupil per school year. A special meeting of the individual education planning team for such pupil or pupils shall be held and shall include 2 volunteer members who reside outside of the local school district and who are acquainted with special education procedures. The volunteers shall hold personal information in the same confidential manner as a school employee.

(b) The volunteers shall review the individual educational plan with the team to determine if the plan complies with the criteria established by the department of education for special education plans, and that:

(1) The plan addresses a real need.

(2) The plan is prudent and not extravagant in cost.

(3) The plan has a reasonable chance of success, given the participation of the pupil, the support of the family, and qualities of the program.

(4) The plan reasonably addresses the obvious needs of the pupil's barriers to academic success which shall be documented in the student's record.

4 Education Trust Fund; Distribution of Funds for Special Education. Amend the introductory paragraph to RSA 198:39, I to read as follows:

I. The state treasurer shall establish an education trust fund in the treasury. Moneys in such fund shall not be used for any purpose other than to distribute adequate education grants to municipalities' school districts pursuant to RSA 198:42, [and] to provide [education property tax hardship relief under RSA 198:55] low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief under RSA 198:56 through RSA 198:61, and to distribute special education funds to cities and towns under RSA 186-C:18. The state treasurer shall deposit into this fund immediately upon receipt:

5 Effective Date. This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.

LBAO

01-2308

9/19/01

HB 1272-FN-A-LOCAL - FISCAL NOTE

FISCAL IMPACT: