[distributed May 26, 2007]
SUMMARY OF KEY POINTS OF PROPOSED ADMINISTRATIVE CONSOLIDATION LEGISLATION
State Policy for Effective and Efficient School Units
The law sets forth state policy to ensure that schools be organized as units in order to provide equitable educational opportunities, rigorous academic programs, uniformity in delivering programs, a greater uniformity in tax rates, more efficient and effective use of limited resources, preservation of school choice and maximum opportunity to deliver services in an efficient manner.
All school units, of whatever form and whatever size, -- SADs, CSDs and municipal school units -- small and large – must:
(1) Work with other units to reorganize into larger, more efficient units; or
(2) Where expansion of the unit would be impractical or inconsistent with state policy, reorganize their own administrative structures to reduce costs.
Process
To begin the process of forming new units, the Commissioner will convene meetings in the 26 Career and Technical Education regions to provide information, assistance and suggested alignments of school units. The Commissioner can suggest alignment of units, but local units aren’t required to follow those suggestions and will ultimately pick their own partners.
Department of Education will provide facilitators to help local planning efforts, funding for the January 2008 election and funds to help units with the costs of transition to a regional unit.
School Unit Size and Number
Existing school units should aim to form regional school units of at least 2,500 resident students, except where geography, demographics, population density, transportation challenges and other obstacles make 2,500 impractical. Where 2,500 is impractical, the units must aim to create units of at least 1,200 students. Offshore islands and tribal schools are not subject to a minimum size requirement.
Legislative intent of the law is to create a maximum of 80 school units.
Reorganization and Cost Reduction Plans
All plans – whether they propose consolidation or not – must show how the unit will, for FY2009 (starting July 1, 2008):
(1) Reduce system administration costs to state-determined EPS levels; and
(2) Reduce transportation, special education and facilities and maintenance expenditures by 5%.
All reorganization plans are subject to voter approval. The Department of Education will fund an election in January of 2008. The referendum will clearly state the penalties that will apply if voters disapprove of the reorganization plan.
Financial Impact; Penalties
General Purpose Aid for Education will be reduced by $36.5 million in FY2009. All units will have a reduced allocation for system administration, transportation, special education and facilities and maintenance.
Units that vote against reorganization will face additional financial impact in the form of penalties, starting on July 1, 2009. Penalties for units that don’t form appropriate regional units by the beginning of FY 2010 include:
1. Loss of minimum subsidy (including the 5% minimum and the special education minimum);
2. Loss of all funds for system administration;
3. A 5% increase in the mill rate required to be raised by that unit;
4. Less favorable consideration in approval and funding for school construction; and
5. Loss of eligibility for isolated school adjustments and transition adjustments.
A unit that votes against reorganization in one referendum can develop another reorganization plan and hold another referendum. The unit can avoid penalties if it approves reorganization by referendum not later than the November 2008 election and is operational within a regional unit by July 1, 2009.
Schools and School Choice
Reorganization plans won’t close schools or displace teachers and students. Local schools can’t be closed unless the regional board votes by a 2/3rds vote AND the municipality where the school is located votes to approve the closure. If the municipality votes not to close the school that the regional board votes to close, the municipality is responsible for only the added cost of keeping the school open, not the entire cost. (same as current SAD law)
Every regional school unit must have a publicly-supported high school. Students who have school choice right now will continue to have school choice after reorganization, even if they join a regional unit that has its own high school.
Teachers and Other School Employees
Teachers and other school employees will be transferred to the new unit, and will retain their rights under collective bargaining contracts. Contracts will continue until their planned expiration dates and there will be an orderly process for continuing collective bargaining.
School Governance; Budget Transparency
Regional school units will be governed by a regional school board; representation on the Board is determined by the local communities as part of the reorganization planning process. Regional boards may create local school committees with locally determined powers and duties.
All school units will provide budget transparency by using a uniform budget format and a budget validation referendum.
Other Provisions
Regional collaboration is facilitated by statutory authorization.
The Department of Education will review and critique all unfunded state mandates pertaining to school systems and report to the Legislature’s Education Committee by December 15, 2008.