Reductions to state aid paid to school districts for payments made under parental choice programs and the Special Needs Scholarship Program. (FE)

The Racine and Wisconsin Parental Choice Programs and the Special Needs Scholarship Program Under current law, per pupil payments to private schools participating in the RPCP, WPCP, and SNSP are paid from sum sufficient appropriations, ensuring that full payments are made to private schools for pupils participating in each of the programs. Current law also requires the Department of Public Instruction to reduce each school district's equalization aid by an amount equal to the total per pupil payments paid to private schools participating in the RPCP, WPCP, and SNSP 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 under the RPCP, WPCP, and SNSP. Under current law, pupils who participated in the RPCP or WPCP before the 2015-16 school year are not included for purposes of the equalization aid reduction.

The bill eliminates reductions to equalization aid for per pupil payments made under the RPCP, WPCP, and SNSP for pupils who begin participating in the RPCP, WPCP, or SNSP in the 2024-25 school year.

Under current law, a pupil participating in the RPCP, WPCP, or SNSP for whom a per pupil payment was made 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. Current law also allows a school district to increase its revenue limit for a school year by the amount of the aid reduction described above for that school year. Under the bill, only legacy pupils for whom a per pupil payment is made in the previous year are counted for purposes of calculating state aid.

The Milwaukee Parental Choice Program Under current law, payments to private schools participating in the MPCP are paid from a sum sufficient appropriation, ensuring that full payments are made to private schools for all pupils participating in the MPCP. Current law also requires DPI to reduce the general state aid for Milwaukee Public Schools by a percentage of the amount paid to private schools participating in the MPCP and deposit the reduction in the general fund. Under revenue limits, MPS may levy property taxes to make up for the amount of general aid lost due to this reduction.

Current law describes the amount of the reduction to MPS in two parts. In the 2023-24 school year, the first part of the reduction to the general state aid for MPS is 3.2 percent of the total per pupil payments made to private schools participating in the MPCP. Under current law, this part of the reduction is reduced by 3.2 percentage points each school year until the 2024-25 school year, at which time there is no reduction. The bill repeals this provision on July 1, 2024, when the provision becomes obsolete.

The second part of the MPS general state aid reduction under current law is equal to 6.6 percent of the total per pupil payments made to private schools participating in the MPCP. However, current law requires DPI to provide additional state aid, known as first class city school levy aid, to the City of Milwaukee and requires the City of Milwaukee to pay the amount received to the school board. In other words, the school board receives the amount of the reduction through first class city school levy aid. The bill does not eliminate this reduction or the first class city school levy aid.