Before July 1, 2021, existing law established the Teachers' School Supplies Assistance Account in the State General Fund and authorized the money in the Account to be used to reimburse a teacher for out-of-pocket expenses incurred for necessary school supplies for pupils he or she instructs or to purchase such supplies directly in certain other ways. (former NRS 387.1253, 387.1255, 387.1257) The Account was abolished on July 1, 2021, which had the effect of eliminating the program that allowed for a teacher to be reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses incurred for such supplies. (Section 80 of Senate Bill No. 543, chapter 624, Statutes of Nevada 2019, at page 4253) This bill recreates the Account and authorizes similar uses of the money in the Account.
Section 3 of this bill creates the Teachers' School Supplies Assistance Account in the State General Fund. Section 4 of this bill requires the Department of Education to determine the amount of money available in the Account and annually apportion the money available in the Account among the school districts and charter schools in this State, based on the number of teachers employed by each school district or charter school, as applicable, at $400 per teacher.
Section 4 also requires the board of trustees of each school district and the governing body of each charter school to establish a special revenue fund and deposit the money it receives from the Account in that fund. Section 4 further requires the money in the special revenue fund to be: (1) disbursed to teachers through various methods for the direct purchase of certain school supplies; or (2) used to reimburse teachers for out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with directly purchasing such supplies. Section 4 also requires the board of trustees of each school district or the governing body of a charter school, as applicable, to transfer any balance remaining in the special revenue fund that has not been committed for expenditure to the Account at the end of each fiscal year.
Section 5 of this bill requires the board of trustees of each school district and the governing body of each charter school to determine the manner in which to distribute the money received from the Account to the teachers, including whether the teachers will be authorized to use a credit card, debit card or purchasing card connected to the fund, or if they will be required to submit a claim for reimbursement. Section 5 also requires a teacher who receives any money from the fund to repay to the fund, by the last day of the fiscal year, any amount of money that: (1) was not used; (2) was used to purchase something other than school supplies for the pupils the teacher instructs; and (3) exceeds the maximum amount authorized for each teacher in any fiscal year in section 4. Section 5 further requires the board of trustees of each school district and the governing body of each charter school to adopt a policy that determines the manner in which to account for disbursements or reimbursements from the fund.