2023 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 10 - Education and Culture
Chapter 172 - Support of Public Schools. Transportation
Section 10-262j. - Minimum budget requirement.

(a) Except as otherwise provided under the provisions of subsections (b) to (h), inclusive, of this section, for any fiscal year, the budgeted appropriation for education shall be not less than the budgeted appropriation for education for the prior fiscal year, plus any aid increase described in subsection (d) of section 10-262i, except that a town may reduce its budgeted appropriation for education for the fiscal year, by one or more of the following:

(1) If a town experiences an aid reduction, as described in subsection (d) of section 10-262i, such town may reduce its budgeted appropriation for education in an amount equal to the aid reduction;

(2) If a district experiences a net reduction in its resident student count during a period that may include any of the five fiscal years immediately prior to the fiscal year for which the budgeted appropriation for education is calculated, such district may reduce its budgeted appropriation for education in an amount equal to the number of such net reduction multiplied by fifty per cent of the net current expenditures per resident student of such district, provided no district may use the resident student count for (A) any fiscal year that was previously used to reduce its budgeted appropriation for education, or (B) the fiscal year ending June 30, 2021, in any calculation of a net reduction of resident students for purposes of reducing its budgeted appropriation for education pursuant to this subdivision for any subsequent fiscal year;

(3) Any district (A) that does not maintain a high school and pays tuition to another school district pursuant to section 10-33 for resident students to attend high school in another district, and (B) in which the number of resident students attending high school for such district for October first of the prior school year, using the data of record as of January thirty-first of the prior school year, is lower than such district's number of resident students attending high school for October first of the school year before the prior school year, using the data of record as of January thirty-first of the school year before the prior school year, may reduce such district's budgeted appropriation for education by the difference in the number of resident students attending high school for such years multiplied by the amount of tuition paid per student pursuant to section 10-33, except for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2022, the number of resident students attending high school for such district for the prior school year shall be the number of resident students attending high school for such district for October 1, 2019, using the data of record as of January 31, 2020; or

(4) Any district that realizes new and documentable savings through (A) increased district efficiencies approved by the Commissioner of Education, including, but not limited to, (i) reductions in costs associated with transportation services, school district administration or contracts that are not the result of collective bargaining or other labor agreements, (ii) an agreement to provide medical or health care benefits pursuant to section 7-464b, (iii) a cooperative agreement relating to the performance of administrative and central office functions, such as business manager functions, for the municipality and the school district pursuant to section 10-241b, (iv) reductions in costs associated with the purchasing or joint purchasing of property insurance, casualty insurance and workers' compensation insurance, following the consultation with the legislative body of the municipality of such district pursuant to section 10-241c, (v) reductions in costs associated with the purchasing of payroll processing or accounts payable software systems, following the consultation with the legislative body of the municipality of such district to determine whether such systems may be purchased or shared on a regional basis pursuant to section 10-241e, (vi) consolidation of information technology services, and (vii) reductions in costs associated with the care and maintenance of athletic fields, or (B) regional collaboration or cooperative arrangements pursuant to section 10-158a may reduce such district's budgeted appropriation for education in an amount equal to half of the amount of savings experienced as a result of such district efficiencies, regional collaboration or cooperative arrangement, provided such reduction shall not exceed one-half of one per cent of the district's budgeted appropriation for education for the prior fiscal year.

(b) For any fiscal year, the Commissioner of Education may permit a town to reduce its budgeted appropriation for education in an amount determined by the commissioner if the school district in such town has permanently ceased operations and closed one or more schools in the school district due to declining enrollment at such closed school or schools in the seven fiscal years immediately prior to the fiscal year for which the budgeted appropriation for education is calculated.

(c) Except as otherwise provided under the provisions of subsections (g) and (h) of this section, a town designated as an alliance district, as defined in section 10-262u, shall not reduce its budgeted appropriation for education pursuant to this section.

(d) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any district that is in the top ten per cent of school districts based on the accountability index, as defined in section 10-223e.

(e) The provisions of this section shall not apply to the member towns of a regional school district during the first full fiscal year following the establishment of the regional school district, provided the budgeted appropriation for education for member towns of such regional school district for each subsequent fiscal year shall be determined in accordance with this section.

(f) Any district that has (1) elected to act as a self-insurer, pursuant to section 10-236, (2) experienced a loss incurred as a result of one or more catastrophic events, as declared by a nationally recognized catastrophe loss index provider, during the prior fiscal year, and (3) increased its budgeted appropriation for education during said prior fiscal year as a result of such loss, shall not be required to include the amount of such increase in the calculation of such district's budgeted appropriation for education for the subsequent fiscal year.

(g) For the fiscal years ending June 30, 2020, to June 30, 2024, inclusive, any district that has received (1) a supplemental appropriation from the board of finance for a town having a board of finance, the board of selectmen for a town having no board of finance or the authority making appropriations for the school district, for the purpose of covering costs associated with COVID-19 expenditures because the budgeted appropriation for education for the district was insufficient to cover such costs, or (2) federal funds received pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, P.L. 116-136, as amended from time to time, the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, P.L. 116-260, as amended from time to time, and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, P.L. 117-2, as amended from time to time, shall not be required to include the amount of such supplemental appropriation or federal funds in the calculation of such district's budgeted appropriation for education for the subsequent fiscal year. As used in this subsection, “COVID-19” means the respiratory disease designated by the World Health Organization on February 11, 2020, as coronavirus 2019, and any related mutation thereof recognized by the World Health Organization as a communicable respiratory disease.

(h) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2022, and each fiscal year thereafter, any district that has been awarded a grant under the school security infrastructure competitive grant program, established pursuant to section 84 of public act 13-3*, during the prior fiscal year, shall not be required to include the amount of such grant in the calculation of such district's budgeted appropriation for education for the subsequent fiscal year.

(i) Notwithstanding the provisions of any special act, municipal charter, local ordinance, home rule ordinance or other ordinance that prohibits or otherwise limits a town from appropriating additional funds to its budgeted appropriation for education after the adoption of such appropriation, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2022, a town may appropriate additional funds to its budgeted appropriation for education to satisfy the requirements of this section if the amount of the equalization aid grant the town is entitled to receive under the provisions of section 10-262h is greater than the amount of such grant that was anticipated by such town when it originally adopted its budgeted appropriation for education for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2022.

(P.A. 88-358, S. 4, 9; P.A. 89-124, S. 6, 13; P.A. 92-262, S. 27, 42; P.A. 93-145, S. 2, 3, 6; P.A. 94-245, S. 35, 46; P.A. 95-226, S. 3, 4, 7, 30; P.A. 97-318, S. 4, 12; P.A. 99-217, S. 6, 8; P.A. 00-187, S. 14, 21, 75; P.A. 01-173, S. 62, 67; P.A. 03-76, S. 23; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 25; P.A. 05-245, S. 30; P.A. 06-135, S. 5; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 07-3, S. 64; P.A. 15-99, S. 1; 15-215, S. 19; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 15-5, S. 511; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 16-3, S. 125; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 17-2, S. 252; P.A. 18-1, S. 2; P.A. 19-117, S. 271; Sept. Sp. Sess. P.A. 20-8, S. 9; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 21-2, S. 346.)

*Note: Section 84 of public act 13-3 is special in nature and therefore has not been codified but remains in full force and effect according to its terms.

History: P.A. 89-124 in Subsec. (e) added forfeiture provisions and a minimum expenditure requirement for kindergarten to grade twelve, inclusive, regional school districts and added new Subsec. (g) re definition of “total need students” for purposes of the section; P.A. 92-262 amended Subsecs. (a), (c) and (f) to add fiscal year 1993, added Subsec. (b)(4), and amended Subsec. (d) to substitute 1994 for 1993; P.A. 93-145 added Subsec. (b)(5) re the amount of aid for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1994, and each fiscal year thereafter and amended Subsec. (d) to make the existing Subsec. Subdiv. (1), limited the applicability of said Subdiv. to the fiscal year ending June 30, 1994, added the “greater of the” existing requirement or the sum of the items described in Subparas. (A) and (B) and added the exception language, and added Subdiv. (2) concerning program expenditures for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1995, and for each fiscal year thereafter, effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 94-245 amended Subsec. (e) to add provision that any additional funds expended pursuant to an agreement between the State Board of Education and a kindergarten to grade twelve, inclusive, regional school district shall not be included in a district's expenditures for the purpose of establishing any future minimum expenditure requirement, effective June 2, 1994; P.A. 95-226 added Subsec. (b)(6) and (7) re the fiscal years ending June 30, 1996, and June 30, 1997, amended Subsec. (d) to limit Subdiv. (2) to the fiscal year ending June 30, 1995, and added Subdiv. (3) concerning the fiscal years ending June 30, 1996, and June 30, 1997, and added Subsec. (f)(2) re fiscal years ending June 30, 1996, and June 30, 1997, and made technical changes, effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 97-318 amended Subsecs. (b) and (d) to add provisions re the fiscal year ending June 30, 1998, and the fiscal year ending June 30, 1999, respectively, effective July 1, 1997; P.A. 99-217 added Subsec. (d)(6) and (7) re expenditures for the fiscal years ending June 30, 2000, and June 30, 2001, effective July 1, 1999; P.A. 00-187 added Subsec. (b)(10) re fiscal year ending June 30, 2000, and each fiscal year thereafter and amended Subsec. (d)(7)(C) to add the clause “if the resident student count for October 1999, is less than the resident student count for October 1998”, effective July 1, 2000; P.A. 01-173 added Subsec. (d)(8) and (9) re fiscal years ending June 30, 2002, and June 30, 2003, respectively, effective July 1, 2001; P.A. 03-76 made technical changes in Subsec. (e), effective June 3, 2003; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 added Subsec. (d)(10) and (11) re fiscal years ending June 30, 2004, and June 30, 2005, effective August 20, 2003; P.A. 05-245 added Subsec. (d)(12) re minimum expenditure for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2006, effective July 1, 2005; P.A. 06-135 added Subsec. (d)(13) re minimum expenditure for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2007, effective July 1, 2006; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 07-3 deleted former Subsec. (e) re forfeitures, redesignated existing Subsecs. (f) and (g) as Subsecs. (e) and (f) and made technical changes, effective July 1, 2007; P.A. 15-99 replaced former provisions re minimum expenditure requirements with new Subsecs. (a) to (e) re minimum budget requirement, effective July 1, 2015; P.A. 15-215 added Subsec. (f) re provisions of section not applicable to member towns of a regional school district during first full fiscal year following establishment of regional school district, effective July 1, 2015; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 15-5 amended Subsec. (d) by adding “currently” and making provisions applicable to a town formerly designated as an alliance district, effective July 1, 2015; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 16-3 amended Subsec. (b) by adding new Subdiv. (1) re town reducing budgeted appropriation for education in amount equal to aid reduction and redesignating existing Subdivs. (1) to (4) as Subdivs. (2) to (5), and amended Subsec. (e) by replacing “district performance” with “accountability” and replacing reference to Sec. 10-262u with reference to Sec. 10-223e, effective July 1, 2016; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 17-2 replaced “2013” with “2015”, replaced “2014” with “2016”, replaced “2015” with “2017”, replaced “2016” with “2018” and replaced “2017” with “2019”, amended Subsec. (a) by adding new Subdiv. (1) re town reducing budgeted appropriation for education in amount equal to aid reduction, and redesignating existing Subdivs. (1) to (4) as Subdivs. (2) to (5), and amended Subsec. (d) by deleting “currently” and “or formerly designated as an alliance district”, effective October 31, 2017; P.A. 18-1 amended Subsec. (b) by adding provision re prior to reductions made by town because of withholdings or reductions made to its equalization aid grant and making technical changes, effective April 26, 2018; P.A. 19-117 replaced “2015” with “2017”, replaced “2016” with “2018”, replaced “2017” with “2019”, replaced “2018” with “2020” and replaced “2019” with “2021”, amended Subsecs. (a) and (b) by deleting former Subdivs. (2) and (3), adding new Subdiv. (2) re districts experiencing a net reduction in resident student count during period of any five prior fiscal years, redesignating existing Subdiv. (4) as new Subdiv. (3), redesignating existing Subdiv. (5) as new Subdiv. (4) and amending same to designate existing provision re increased district efficiencies as Subpara. (A) and add clauses (i) to (vii) and to designate existing provision re regional collaboration or cooperative arrangements as Subpara. (B), added Subsec. (g) re self-insured districts that experience loss as a result of catastrophic events not required to include amount in calculation of budgeted appropriation for education for subsequent fiscal year, and made technical and conforming changes throughout, effective July 1, 2019; Sept. Sp. Sess. P.A. 20-8 amended Subsecs. (a) and (b) by replacing “(g)” with “(h)”, amended Subsec. (d) by adding “Except as otherwise provided under the provisions of subsection (h) of this section, for” and making a conforming change, and added Subsec. (h) re any district that received a supplemental appropriation for the purpose of covering costs associated with COVID-19 expenditures or federal funds pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, not required to include amount in calculation of budgeted appropriation for education for subsequent fiscal year, effective October 2, 2020; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 21-2 amended Subsec. (a) by replacing “the fiscal year” with “any fiscal year” and “fiscal year ending June 30, 2019” with “prior fiscal year” and deleting “ending June 30, 2020,” by adding Subpara. (A) designator and Subpara. (B) re fiscal year ending June 30, 2021 in Subdiv. (2), substantially revising Subdiv. (3) re calculation of reduction in district's budgeted appropriation for education allowed for certain districts, and replacing “fiscal year ending June 30, 2019” with “prior fiscal year” in Subdiv. (4), deleted former Subsec. (b) re town's budgeted appropriation for education for fiscal year ending June 30, 2021, redesignated existing Subsecs. (c) to (h) as Subsecs. (b) to (g), amended redesignated Subsec. (b) by replacing “For the fiscal years ending June 30, 2020, and June 30, 2021” with “For any fiscal year” and “fiscal years ending June 30, 2013, to June 30, 2020, inclusive” with “seven fiscal years immediately prior to the fiscal year for which the budgeted appropriation for education is calculated”, amended redesignated Subsec. (c) by replacing “subsection (h)” with “subsections (g) and (h)” and deleting “for the fiscal years ending June 30, 2020, and June 30, 2021,”, amended redesignated Subsecs. (d) to (f) by deleting references to fiscal years ending June 30, 2020, and June 30, 2021, amended redesignated Subsec. (g) by replacing “and June 30, 2021” with “to June 30, 2024, inclusive” and adding “received” and reference to Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act and American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, added new Subsec. (h) re grants awarded under school security infrastructure competitive grant program, added Subsec. (i) permitting town to appropriate additional funds to budgeted appropriation for education, and made technical and conforming changes, effective July 1, 2021.