HB 4141

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to public school class size maximums;
3amending s. 1003.03, F.S.; deleting provisions which
4impose financial penalties, and provide calculations
5therefor, on school districts that do not meet maximum
6class size requirements; providing an effective date.
7
8Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
9
10     Section 1.  Subsection (5) of section 1003.03, Florida
11Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (4) and present subsection
12(4) of that section is amended to read:
13     1003.03  Maximum class size.-
14     (4)  ACCOUNTABILITY.-
15     (a)  If the department determines that the number of
16students assigned to any individual class exceeds the class size
17maximum, as required in subsection (1), based upon the October
18student membership survey, the department shall:
19     1.  Identify, for each grade group, the number of classes
20in which the number of students exceeds the maximum and the
21total number of students which exceeds the maximum for all
22classes.
23     2.  Determine the number of FTE students which exceeds the
24maximum for each grade group.
25     3.  Multiply the total number of FTE students which exceeds
26the maximum for each grade group by the district's FTE dollar
27amount of the class size categorical allocation for that year
28and calculate the total for all three grade groups.
29     4.  Multiply the total number of FTE students which exceeds
30the maximum for all classes by an amount equal to 50 percent of
31the base student allocation adjusted by the district cost
32differential for the 2010-2011 fiscal year and by an amount
33equal to the base student allocation adjusted by the district
34cost differential beginning in the 2011-2012 fiscal year and
35thereafter.
36     5.  Reduce the district's class size categorical allocation
37by an amount equal to the sum of the calculations in
38subparagraphs 3. and 4.
39     (b)  The amount of funds reduced shall be the lesser of the
40amount calculated in paragraph (a) or the undistributed balance
41of the district's class size categorical allocation. The Florida
42Education Finance Program Appropriation Allocation Conference
43shall verify the department's calculation in paragraph (a). The
44commissioner may withhold distribution of the class size
45categorical allocation to the extent necessary to comply with
46paragraph (a).
47     (c)  In lieu of the reduction calculation in paragraph (a),
48if the Commissioner of Education has evidence that a district
49was unable to meet the class size requirements despite
50appropriate efforts to do so or because of an extreme emergency,
51the commissioner may recommend by February 15, subject to
52approval of the Legislative Budget Commission, the reduction of
53an alternate amount of funds from the district's class size
54categorical allocation.
55     (d)  Upon approval of the reduction calculation in
56paragraphs (a)-(c), the commissioner must prepare a reallocation
57of the funds made available for the districts that have fully
58met the class size requirements. The funds shall be reallocated
59by calculating an amount of up to 5 percent of the base student
60allocation multiplied by the total district FTE students. The
61reallocation total may not exceed 25 percent of the total funds
62reduced.
63     (e)  Each district that has not complied with the
64requirements in subsection (1) shall submit to the commissioner
65by February 15 a plan certified by the district school board
66that describes the specific actions the district will take in
67order to fully comply with the requirements in subsection (1) by
68October of the following school year. If a district submits the
69certified plan by the required deadline, the funds remaining
70after the reallocation calculation in paragraph (d) shall be
71added back to the district's class size categorical allocation
72based on each qualifying district's proportion of the total
73reduction for all qualifying districts for which a reduction was
74calculated in paragraphs (a)-(c). However, no district shall
75have an amount added back that is greater than the amount that
76was reduced.
77     (f)  The department shall adjust school district class size
78reduction categorical allocation distributions based on the
79calculations in paragraphs (a)-(e).
80     Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.