SB 743

This bill creates a committee on uniform school budget and accounting and

requires the Department of Public Instruction to, after considering

recommendations from the committee, establish a new computerized uniform

budget and accounting system for the transmission of financial information from

school districts, independent charter schools, and county children with disabilities

education boards (CCDEBs) to DPI (the new budget and accounting system).

Under the bill, the new budget and accounting system must allow DPI to

annually collect and report detailed information related to the receipt and

expenditure of state, federal, and local funds at the school district and school level.

The new budget and accounting system must also make data collected through the

system available on a single web page on DPI's Internet site. DPI must present the

data on its Internet site in a format that allows the public to download, sort, search,

and access the data at no cost. Finally, the bill requires DPI to annually conduct a

public information campaign on the availability of financial data on its Internet site.

The bill requires school boards, charter schools, and CCDEBs to begin using the new

budget and accounting system in the 2021-22 school year.

The bill creates a committee on uniform school budget and accounting to advise

DPI on the creation and maintenance of the new budget and accounting system.

Under the bill, by no later than January 1, 2021, the committee must submit an

advisory report to DPI on the methods and data that the committee determines are

necessary to create the new budget and accounting system. The advisory report must

include recommendations on the reporting categories to be included in the new

budget and accounting system, the financial data to be collected for each reporting

category, and whether DPI's hardware, software, data security, training, and

communications related to financial reporting are appropriate for the new budget

and accounting system.

No later than 45 days after receiving the advisory report from the committee,

DPI must respond in writing to the committee on whether DPI will implement each

recommendation in the report. DPI must also deliver the advisory report and DPI's

written response to the advisory report to the Joint Committee on Finance. If JCF

does not schedule a meeting to review DPI's response within 14 days, DPI must

implement the recommendations, as modified in DPI's written response, to establish

the new budget and accounting system. If JCF does schedule a meeting to review

DPI's written response, DPI may not establish the new budget and accounting

system until JCF approves DPI's plan to establish the new budget and accounting

system.