AB 688

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

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.