2013 Nebraska Revised Statutes
Chapter 79 - SCHOOLS
79-1003 - Terms, defined.

79-1003. Terms, defined.

For purposes of the Tax Equity and Educational Opportunities Support Act:

(1) Adjusted general fund operating expenditures means (a) for school fiscal years 2010-11 through 2012-13, the difference of the general fund operating expenditures as calculated pursuant to subdivision (22) of this section increased by, or for aid calculated for school fiscal year 2010-11 multiplied by, the cost growth factor calculated pursuant to section 79-1007.10, minus the transportation allowance, special receipts allowance, poverty allowance, limited English proficiency allowance, distance education and telecommunications allowance, elementary site allowance, elementary class size allowance, summer school allowance, instructional time allowance, teacher education allowance, and focus school and program allowance, and (b) for school fiscal year 2013-14 and each school fiscal year thereafter, the difference of the general fund operating expenditures as calculated pursuant to subdivision (22) of this section increased by the cost growth factor calculated pursuant to section 79-1007.10, minus the transportation allowance, special receipts allowance, poverty allowance, limited English proficiency allowance, distance education and telecommunications allowance, elementary site allowance, summer school allowance, instructional time allowance, teacher education allowance, and focus school and program allowance;

(2) Adjusted valuation means the assessed valuation of taxable property of each local system in the state, adjusted pursuant to the adjustment factors described in section 79-1016. Adjusted valuation means the adjusted valuation for the property tax year ending during the school fiscal year immediately preceding the school fiscal year in which the aid based upon that value is to be paid. For purposes of determining the local effort rate yield pursuant to section 79-1015.01, adjusted valuation does not include the value of any property which a court, by a final judgment from which no appeal is taken, has declared to be nontaxable or exempt from taxation;

(3) Allocated income tax funds means the amount of assistance paid to a local system pursuant to section 79-1005.01 as adjusted by the minimum levy adjustment pursuant to section 79-1008.02;

(4) Average daily membership means the average daily membership for grades kindergarten through twelve attributable to the local system, as provided in each district's annual statistical summary, and includes the proportionate share of students enrolled in a public school instructional program on less than a full-time basis;

(5) Base fiscal year means the first school fiscal year following the school fiscal year in which the reorganization or unification occurred;

(6) Board means the school board of each school district;

(7) Categorical funds means funds limited to a specific purpose by federal or state law, including, but not limited to, Title I funds, Title VI funds, federal vocational education funds, federal school lunch funds, Indian education funds, Head Start funds, and funds from the Education Innovation Fund. Categorical funds does not include funds received pursuant to section 79-1028.02 or 79-1028.04;

(8) Consolidate means to voluntarily reduce the number of school districts providing education to a grade group and does not include dissolution pursuant to section 79-498;

(9) Converted contract means an expired contract that was in effect for at least fifteen school years beginning prior to school year 2012-13 for the education of students in a nonresident district in exchange for tuition from the resident district when the expiration of such contract results in the nonresident district educating students, who would have been covered by the contract if the contract were still in effect, as option students pursuant to the enrollment option program established in section 79-234;

(10) Converted contract option student means a student who will be an option student pursuant to the enrollment option program established in section 79-234 for the school fiscal year for which aid is being calculated and who would have been covered by a converted contract if the contract were still in effect and such school fiscal year is the first school fiscal year for which such contract is not in effect;

(11) Department means the State Department of Education;

(12) District means any Class I, II, III, IV, V, or VI school district and, beginning with the calculation of state aid for school fiscal year 2011-12 and each school fiscal year thereafter, a unified system as defined in section 79-4,108;

(13) Ensuing school fiscal year means the school fiscal year following the current school fiscal year;

(14) Equalization aid means the amount of assistance calculated to be paid to a local system pursuant to sections 79-1007.11 to 79-1007.23, 79-1007.25, 79-1008.01 to 79-1022, 79-1022.02, 79-1028.02, and 79-1028.04;

(15) Fall membership means the total membership in kindergarten through grade twelve attributable to the local system as reported on the fall school district membership reports for each district pursuant to section 79-528;

(16) Fiscal year means the state fiscal year which is the period from July 1 to the following June 30;

(17) Formula students means:

(a) For state aid certified pursuant to section 79-1022, the sum of the product of fall membership from the school fiscal year immediately preceding the school fiscal year in which the aid is to be paid multiplied by the average ratio of average daily membership to fall membership for the second school fiscal year immediately preceding the school fiscal year in which the aid is to be paid and the prior two school fiscal years plus sixty percent of the qualified early childhood education fall membership plus tuitioned students from the school fiscal year immediately preceding the school fiscal year in which aid is to be paid minus the product of the number of students enrolled in kindergarten that is not full-day kindergarten from the fall membership multiplied by 0.5; and

(b) For the final calculation of state aid pursuant to section 79-1065, the sum of average daily membership plus sixty percent of the qualified early childhood education average daily membership plus tuitioned students minus the product of the number of students enrolled in kindergarten that is not full-day kindergarten from the average daily membership multiplied by 0.5 from the school fiscal year immediately preceding the school fiscal year in which aid was paid;

(18) Free lunch and free milk student means a student who qualified for free lunches or free milk from the most recent data available on November 1 of the school fiscal year immediately preceding the school fiscal year in which aid is to be paid;

(19) Full-day kindergarten means kindergarten offered by a district for at least one thousand thirty-two instructional hours;

(20) General fund budget of expenditures means the total budget of disbursements and transfers for general fund purposes as certified in the budget statement adopted pursuant to the Nebraska Budget Act, except that for purposes of the limitation imposed in section 79-1023 and the calculation pursuant to subdivision (2) of section 79-1027.01, the general fund budget of expenditures does not include any special grant funds, exclusive of local matching funds, received by a district;

(21) General fund expenditures means all expenditures from the general fund;

(22) General fund operating expenditures means for state aid calculated for school fiscal years 2012-13 and each school fiscal year thereafter, as reported on the annual financial report for the second school fiscal year immediately preceding the school fiscal year in which aid is to be paid, the total general fund expenditures minus (a) the amount of all receipts to the general fund, to the extent that such receipts are not included in local system formula resources, from early childhood education tuition, summer school tuition, educational entities as defined in section 79-1201.01 for providing distance education courses through the Educational Service Unit Coordinating Council to such educational entities, private foundations, individuals, associations, charitable organizations, the textbook loan program authorized by section 79-734, federal impact aid, and levy override elections pursuant to section 77-3444, (b) the amount of expenditures for categorical funds, tuition paid, transportation fees paid to other districts, adult education, community services, redemption of the principal portion of general fund debt service, retirement incentive plans authorized by section 79-855, and staff development assistance authorized by section 79-856, (c) the amount of any transfers from the general fund to any bond fund and transfers from other funds into the general fund, (d) any legal expenses in excess of fifteen-hundredths of one percent of the formula need for the school fiscal year in which the expenses occurred, (e) expenditures to pay for sums agreed to be paid by a school district to certificated employees in exchange for a voluntary termination occurring prior to July 1, 2009, occurring on or after the last day of the 2010-11 school year and prior to the first day of the 2013-14 school year, or, to the extent that a district has demonstrated to the State Board of Education pursuant to section 79-1028.01 that the agreement will result in a net savings in salary and benefit costs to the school district over a five-year period, occurring on or after the first day of the 2013-14 school year, (f)(i) expenditures to pay for employer contributions pursuant to subsection (2) of section 79-958 to the School Employees Retirement System of the State of Nebraska to the extent that such expenditures exceed the employer contributions under such subsection that would have been made at a contribution rate of seven and thirty-five hundredths percent or (ii) expenditures to pay for school district contributions pursuant to subdivision (1)(c)(i) of section 79-9,113 to the retirement system established pursuant to the Class V School Employees Retirement Act to the extent that such expenditures exceed the school district contributions under such subdivision that would have been made at a contribution rate of seven and thirty-seven hundredths percent, and (g) any amounts paid by the district for lobbyist fees and expenses reported to the Clerk of the Legislature pursuant to section 49-1483.

For purposes of this subdivision (22) of this section, receipts from levy override elections shall equal ninety-nine percent of the difference of the total general fund levy minus a levy of one dollar and five cents per one hundred dollars of taxable valuation multiplied by the assessed valuation for school districts that have voted pursuant to section 77-3444 to override the maximum levy provided pursuant to section 77-3442;

(23) High school district means a school district providing instruction in at least grades nine through twelve;

(24) Income tax liability means the amount of the reported income tax liability for resident individuals pursuant to the Nebraska Revenue Act of 1967 less all nonrefundable credits earned and refunds made;

(25) Income tax receipts means the amount of income tax collected pursuant to the Nebraska Revenue Act of 1967 less all nonrefundable credits earned and refunds made;

(26) Limited English proficiency students means the number of students with limited English proficiency in a district from the most recent data available on November 1 of the school fiscal year preceding the school fiscal year in which aid is to be paid plus the difference of such students with limited English proficiency minus the average number of limited English proficiency students for such district, prior to such addition, for the three immediately preceding school fiscal years if such difference is greater than zero;

(27) Local system means a learning community for purposes of calculation of state aid for the second full school fiscal year after becoming a learning community and each school fiscal year thereafter, a unified system, a Class VI district and the associated Class I districts, or a Class II, III, IV, or V district and any affiliated Class I districts or portions of Class I districts. The membership, expenditures, and resources of Class I districts that are affiliated with multiple high school districts will be attributed to local systems based on the percent of the Class I valuation that is affiliated with each high school district;

(28) Low-income child means a child under nineteen years of age living in a household having an annual adjusted gross income for the second calendar year preceding the beginning of the school fiscal year for which aid is being calculated equal to or less than the maximum household income that would allow a student from a family of four people to be a free lunch and free milk student during the school fiscal year immediately preceding the school fiscal year for which aid is being calculated;

(29) Low-income students means the number of low-income children within the district multiplied by the ratio of the formula students in the district divided by the total children under nineteen years of age residing in the district as derived from income tax information;

(30) Most recently available complete data year means the most recent single school fiscal year for which the annual financial report, fall school district membership report, annual statistical summary, Nebraska income tax liability by school district for the calendar year in which the majority of the school fiscal year falls, and adjusted valuation data are available;

(31) Poverty students means the number of low-income students or the number of students who are free lunch and free milk students in a district plus the difference of the number of low-income students or the number of students who are free lunch and free milk students in a district, whichever is greater, minus the average number of poverty students for such district, prior to such addition, for the three immediately preceding school fiscal years if such difference is greater than zero;

(32) Qualified early childhood education average daily membership means the product of the average daily membership for school fiscal year 2006-07 and each school fiscal year thereafter of students who will be eligible to attend kindergarten the following school year and are enrolled in an early childhood education program approved by the department pursuant to section 79-1103 for such school district for such school year multiplied by the ratio of the actual instructional hours of the program divided by one thousand thirty-two if: (a) The program is receiving a grant pursuant to such section for the third year; (b) the program has already received grants pursuant to such section for three years; or (c) the program has been approved pursuant to subsection (5) of section 79-1103 for such school year and the two preceding school years, including any such students in portions of any of such programs receiving an expansion grant;

(33) Qualified early childhood education fall membership means the product of membership on the last Friday in September 2006 and each year thereafter of students who will be eligible to attend kindergarten the following school year and are enrolled in an early childhood education program approved by the department pursuant to section 79-1103 for such school district for such school year multiplied by the ratio of the planned instructional hours of the program divided by one thousand thirty-two if: (a) The program is receiving a grant pursuant to such section for the third year; (b) the program has already received grants pursuant to such section for three years; or (c) the program has been approved pursuant to subsection (5) of section 79-1103 for such school year and the two preceding school years, including any such students in portions of any of such programs receiving an expansion grant;

(34) Regular route transportation means the transportation of students on regularly scheduled daily routes to and from the attendance center;

(35) Reorganized district means any district involved in a consolidation and currently educating students following consolidation;

(36) School year or school fiscal year means the fiscal year of a school district as defined in section 79-1091;

(37) Sparse local system means a local system that is not a very sparse local system but which meets the following criteria:

(a)(i) Less than two students per square mile in the county in which each high school is located, based on the school district census, (ii) less than one formula student per square mile in the local system, and (iii) more than ten miles between each high school attendance center and the next closest high school attendance center on paved roads;

(b)(i) Less than one and one-half formula students per square mile in the local system and (ii) more than fifteen miles between each high school attendance center and the next closest high school attendance center on paved roads;

(c)(i) Less than one and one-half formula students per square mile in the local system and (ii) more than two hundred seventy-five square miles in the local system; or

(d)(i) Less than two formula students per square mile in the local system and (ii) the local system includes an area equal to ninety-five percent or more of the square miles in the largest county in which a high school attendance center is located in the local system;

(38) Special education means specially designed kindergarten through grade twelve instruction pursuant to section 79-1125, and includes special education transportation;

(39) Special grant funds means the budgeted receipts for grants, including, but not limited to, categorical funds, reimbursements for wards of the court, short-term borrowings including, but not limited to, registered warrants and tax anticipation notes, interfund loans, insurance settlements, and reimbursements to county government for previous overpayment. The state board shall approve a listing of grants that qualify as special grant funds;

(40) State aid means the amount of assistance paid to a district pursuant to the Tax Equity and Educational Opportunities Support Act;

(41) State board means the State Board of Education;

(42) State support means all funds provided to districts by the State of Nebraska for the general fund support of elementary and secondary education;

(43) Statewide average basic funding per formula student means the statewide total basic funding for all districts divided by the statewide total formula students for all districts;

(44) Statewide average general fund operating expenditures per formula student means the statewide total general fund operating expenditures for all districts divided by the statewide total formula students for all districts;

(45) Teacher has the definition found in section 79-101;

(46) Temporary aid adjustment factor means (a) for school fiscal years before school fiscal year 2007-08, one and one-fourth percent of the sum of the local system's transportation allowance, the local system's special receipts allowance, and the product of the local system's adjusted formula students multiplied by the average formula cost per student in the local system's cost grouping and (b) for school fiscal year 2007-08, one and one-fourth percent of the sum of the local system's transportation allowance, special receipts allowance, and distance education and telecommunications allowance and the product of the local system's adjusted formula students multiplied by the average formula cost per student in the local system's cost grouping;

(47) Tuition receipts from converted contracts means tuition receipts received by a district from another district in the most recently available complete data year pursuant to a converted contract prior to the expiration of the contract;

(48) Tuitioned students means students in kindergarten through grade twelve of the district whose tuition is paid by the district to some other district or education agency; and

(49) Very sparse local system means a local system that has:

(a)(i) Less than one-half student per square mile in each county in which each high school attendance center is located based on the school district census, (ii) less than one formula student per square mile in the local system, and (iii) more than fifteen miles between the high school attendance center and the next closest high school attendance center on paved roads; or

(b)(i) More than four hundred fifty square miles in the local system, (ii) less than one-half student per square mile in the local system, and (iii) more than fifteen miles between each high school attendance center and the next closest high school attendance center on paved roads.

Source

Laws 1990, LB 1059, § 3;
Laws 1991, LB 511, § 71;
Laws 1992, LB 245, § 76;
Laws 1994, LB 1290, § 3;
Laws 1995, LB 840, § 4;
R.S.Supp.,1995, § 79-3803;
Laws 1996, LB 900, § 654;
Laws 1996, LB 1050, § 12;
Laws 1997, LB 347, § 29;
Laws 1997, LB 710, § 5;
Laws 1997, LB 713, § 1;
Laws 1997, LB 806, § 31;
Laws 1998, LB 306, § 42;
Laws 1998, LB 1134, § 2;
Laws 1998, LB 1219, § 15;
Laws 1998, LB 1229, § 3;
Laws 1998, Spec. Sess., LB 1, § 15;
Laws 1999, LB 149, § 3;
Laws 1999, LB 813, § 19;
Laws 2001, LB 313, § 1;
Laws 2001, LB 797, § 18;
Laws 2001, LB 833, § 4;
Laws 2002, LB 898, § 3;
Laws 2005, LB 126, § 45;
Laws 2005, LB 577, § 1;
Laws 2006, LB 1024, § 73;
Laws 2006, LB 1208, § 4;
Referendum 2006, No. 422;
Laws 2007, LB641, § 13;
Laws 2008, LB988, § 9;
Laws 2009, LB545, § 4;
Laws 2009, LB549, § 26;
Laws 2009, First Spec. Sess., LB5, § 3;
Laws 2010, LB1071, § 12;
Laws 2011, LB18, § 2;
Laws 2011, LB235, § 5;
Laws 2011, LB382, § 5;
Laws 2011, LB509, § 38;
Laws 2013, LB407, § 2;
Laws 2013, LB553, § 15.
Note: The Revisor of Statutes has pursuant to section 49-769 correlated LB407, section 2, with LB553, section 15, to reflect all amendments.
Note: Changes made by LB407 became effective May 22, 2013. Changes made by LB553 became operative July 1, 2013.

Cross References

Class V School Employees Retirement Act, see section 79-978.01.
Nebraska Budget Act, see section 13-501.
Nebraska Revenue Act of 1967, see section 77-2701.