The bill amends Section 16-7.2-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-7.2, known as "The Education Equity and Property Tax Relief Act," to establish a permanent foundation education aid formula. This formula includes a core instruction amount based on regional expenditure data and a student success factor to support high-need students, defined as those with family incomes at or below 185% of federal poverty guidelines. The bill requires the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to update the core-instruction amount annually and to develop a new poverty measure by October 1, 2022, for the fiscal year 2024 budget submission. This measure should not rely on school nutrition programs and should serve as a proxy for poverty status. The department is also tasked with providing estimates of foundation education aid costs, reporting updated figures based on October 1 average daily membership by December 1, and allowing local education agencies to set aside funds for expanded learning opportunities.

Additionally, the bill introduces a new subsection (f), which mandates the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to review the student success factor of 40% to ensure it provides adequate funding for local education agencies to meet students' instructional needs. The department must complete this review and report its findings to the governor, the president of the senate, and the speaker of the house by October 1, 2023. The bill will take effect upon passage. The explanation provided by the Legislative Council states that the act requires a review of the formula components used to compute aid for high-need students and will be effective immediately upon passage.

Statutes affected:
235: 16-7.2-3