In Pennsylvania, we fund our public K-12 education system on a per-pupil basis. The General Assembly appropriates funding to school districts based on the number of students, within their geographic boundaries, who are educated by a public school. For this reason, it is imperative that student residency is verified on an annual basis by school districts to ensure that state taxpayer funds are being accurately and appropriately allocated.
 
Last year, mandatory residency verification was enacted for students attending a Pennsylvania public cyber charter school. In the near future, I plan to introduce legislation that would create parity between the required residency verification for students in public cyber charter schools and students attending public school districts.
 
This legislation would require annual residency verification for students being educated by a school district and by a public cyber charter school, to ensure the accurate allocation of state funding. The legislation would create a streamlined process for families, whose children attend a school district or a public cyber charter school, to verify their residency with their chosen public school. The proposed legislation will include explicit protections for students who are experiencing homelessness, as required by the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, to ensure there are no barriers in accessing a public education for these students. 
 
Please join me in co-sponsoring this legislation to ensure the accurate allocation of state funding for students attending public school districts and public cyber charter schools.