2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE
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2023 SENATE BILL 652
November 9, 2023 - Introduced by Senators JAGLER, BALLWEG, STROEBEL, MARKLEIN
and NASS, cosponsored by Representatives SCHUTT, GOEBEN, BALDEH,
DITTRICH, ROZAR, O'CONNOR, RETTINGER, BRANDTJEN and BEHNKE. Referred to
Committee on Education.
1 AN ACT to repeal 118.40 (2r) (g), 118.40 (2x) (f) and 121.07 (2) (d) and (f); and to
2 amend 121.085 and 121.90 (1) (g) of the statutes; relating to: reductions to
3 state aid paid to school districts for payments to certain independent charter
4 schools.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill repeals reductions to state aid paid to school districts for per pupil
payments to independent charter schools authorized by the Office of Educational
Opportunity in the UW System, the chancellor of an institution in the UW System
other than the UW-Milwaukee or UW-Parkside, a technical college district board
other than the Milwaukee area technical college district board, the county executive
of Waukesha County, the college of Menominee Nation, or the Lac Courte Oreilles
Ojibwa community college (a “new charter school authorizer”).
Under current law, per pupil payments to an independent charter school
authorized by a new charter school authorizer are paid from sum sufficient
appropriations, ensuring that full payments are made to independent charter
schools. Current law also requires DPI to reduce each school district's equalization
aid by an amount equal to the total per pupil payments paid to these independent
charter schools that are attributable to pupils residing in that school district. If a
school district does not receive equalization aid sufficient to cover the aid reduction,
the balance is reduced from other state aid received by the school district. These aid
reductions are deposited in the general fund. In general, these reductions reimburse
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SENATE BILL 652
the general fund for per pupil payments made to independent charter schools that
are authorized by new charter school authorizers.
The bill eliminates reductions to equalization aid for per pupil payments made
to these independent charter schools beginning in the 2024-25 school year. The
2021-23 biennial budget eliminated reductions to equalization aid for payments
made to independent charter schools authorized by the City of Milwaukee, the
chancellor of UW-Milwaukee, the chancellor of UW-Parkside, or the Milwaukee
area technical college district board, also known as legacy charter school authorizers.
Under current law, a pupil for whom a per pupil payment was made to an
independent charter school authorized by a new charter school authorizer in the
previous year is included in the pupil's resident school district's membership for
purposes of calculating general state aids. A school district's membership in the
previous school year is a factor used to calculate equalization aid. Additionally,
under current law, pupils attending an independent charter school authorized by a
new charter school authorizer are included in their resident school district's pupil
count for purposes of calculating revenue limits.
The bill repeals both of these provisions. Under the bill, a pupil attending an
independent charter school authorized by a new charter school authorizer is not
included in the pupil's resident school district membership beginning in the 2025-26
school year and is not counted as enrolled in the pupil's resident school district for
purposes of revenue limits beginning in the 2024-25 school year.
For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be
printed as an appendix to this bill.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
1 SECTION 1. 118.40 (2r) (g) of the statutes is repealed.
2 SECTION 2. 118.40 (2x) (f) of the statutes is repealed.
3 SECTION 3. 121.07 (2) (d) and (f) of the statutes are repealed.
4 SECTION 4. 121.085 of the statutes is amended to read:
5 121.085 State aid; other reductions. (1) The department shall make state
6 aid adjustments under s. 118.51 (16) and (17) before making a reduction under s.
7 115.7915 (4m) (f), 118.40 (2r) (g) or (2x) (f), or 118.60 (4d) (b).
8 (2) For purposes of ss. 115.7915 (4m) (f) 2., 118.40 (2r) (g) 2. and (2x) (f) 2., and
9 118.60 (4d) (b) 2., a school district's aid under s. 121.08 is insufficient to cover a
10 reduction if, after making state aid adjustments under s. 118.51 (16) and (17), the
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SENATE BILL 652 SECTION 4
1 amount of the school district's aid under s. 121.08 is insufficient to cover all of the
2 reductions under ss. 115.7915 (4m) (f) 1., 118.40 (2r) (g) 1. and (2x) (f) 1., and 118.60
3 (4d) (b) 1.
4 (3) The state superintendent shall ensure that the aid reductions under ss.
5 115.7915 (4m) (f) 1., 118.40 (2r) (g) 1. and (2x) (f) 1., and 118.60 (4d) (b) 1. lapse to the
6 general fund.
7 SECTION 5. 121.90 (1) (g) of the statutes is amended to read:
8 121.90 (1) (g) In Beginning in the 2017-18 school year and in each ending in
9 the 2023-24 school year thereafter, the “number of pupils enrolled" shall include the
10 total number of pupils residing in the school district who on the 3rd Friday of
11 September of each appropriate school year attend a charter school established under
12 a contract with an entity under s. 118.40 (2r) (b) 1. e. to h. or a charter school
13 established under a contract with the director under s. 118.40 (2x).
14 SECTION 6.0Initial applicability.
15 (1) The treatment of s. 118.40 (2r) (g) and (2x) (f) first applies to state aid paid
16 in the 2024-25 school year.
17 SECTION 7.0Effective dates. This act takes effect on the day after publication,
18 except as follows:
19 (1) The treatment of s. 121.07 (2) (d) and (f) takes effect on July 1, 2025.
20 (END)


Statutes affected:
Bill Text: 118.40(2r)(g), 118.40, 118.40(2x)(f), 121.085, 121.90(1)(g), 121.90