Iberville Parish School Board v. Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the State of Louisiana Through the State Department of Education C/W Louisiana Association of Educators, Caddo Association of Educators, Calcasieu Association of Educators, Inc., Concordia Association of Educators, the East Baton Rouge Association of Educators, Lafayette Parish Association of Educators, Madison Association of Educators, Monroe Association of Educators, St. Landry Association of Educators, St. Mary Association of Educators, Ann Burruss, Rev. Oscar Hamilton, Deborah Hargrave, Melinda Waller Mangham and Thomas Tate v. State of Louisiana, the Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the State of Louisiana Through the Department of Education

248 So. 3d 299
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedMarch 13, 2018
Docket2017-C-0257 C/W 2017-C-0633 2017-C-0634
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 248 So. 3d 299 (Iberville Parish School Board v. Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the State of Louisiana Through the State Department of Education C/W Louisiana Association of Educators, Caddo Association of Educators, Calcasieu Association of Educators, Inc., Concordia Association of Educators, the East Baton Rouge Association of Educators, Lafayette Parish Association of Educators, Madison Association of Educators, Monroe Association of Educators, St. Landry Association of Educators, St. Mary Association of Educators, Ann Burruss, Rev. Oscar Hamilton, Deborah Hargrave, Melinda Waller Mangham and Thomas Tate v. State of Louisiana, the Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the State of Louisiana Through the Department of Education) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Iberville Parish School Board v. Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the State of Louisiana Through the State Department of Education C/W Louisiana Association of Educators, Caddo Association of Educators, Calcasieu Association of Educators, Inc., Concordia Association of Educators, the East Baton Rouge Association of Educators, Lafayette Parish Association of Educators, Madison Association of Educators, Monroe Association of Educators, St. Landry Association of Educators, St. Mary Association of Educators, Ann Burruss, Rev. Oscar Hamilton, Deborah Hargrave, Melinda Waller Mangham and Thomas Tate v. State of Louisiana, the Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the State of Louisiana Through the Department of Education, 248 So. 3d 299 (La. 2018).

Opinions

GENOVESE, Justice

We are called upon to determine whether the lower court erred in declaring unconstitutional certain provisions of Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 55 of 2014, which applies the formula contained in La.R.S. 17:3995 and allocates Minimum Foundation Program ("MFP") funding to New Type 2 charter schools. In accordance with our legally-mandated de novo review, we find the court of appeal erred in declaring the constitution prohibits the payment of MFP funds to New Type 2 charter schools. Thus, the appellate court's declaration of unconstitutionality is reversed.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

In the 2014 regular session, the Louisiana Legislature passed Act 15, a general appropriations bill for the 2014-2015 fiscal year which contained Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 55 ("SCR 55"). SCR 55 is the vehicle by which the legislature approved the 2014-2015 MFP formula adopted by the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education ("BESE") as required by La. Const. art. VIII, § 13 (B), which dictates that BESE "annually develop and adopt a formula which shall be used to determine the cost of a minimum foundation program of education in all public elementary and secondary schools."

The MFP is Louisiana's principal source for funding public elementary and secondary education. The formula developed and adopted by BESE takes into consideration the number of students in each school district and the special characteristics of those students. Presently, once a school system receives its MFP allocation from the state, individual charter schools are allocated their share of those funds pursuant to La.R.S. 17:3995.1

*302The plaintiffs, Iberville Parish School Board ("IPSB") and the Louisiana Association of Educators ("LAE"),2 each filed petitions for injunctive and declaratory relief, naming as defendants BESE and the State of Louisiana through the Department of Education ("Department").3 The suits were consolidated.

The plaintiffs challenged the constitutionality of SCR 55(II)(B) and also sought preliminary and permanent injunctive relief. The plaintiffs alleged SCR 55(II)(B) is an unconstitutional diversion of MFP funds, pursuant to La. Const. art. VIII, § 13 (B), which requires the state to annually develop and adopt a formula to determine a minimum foundation program of education in public elementary and secondary schools, and to equitably allocate the funds to parish and city school systems. The plaintiffs asserted SCR 55(II)(B) unconstitutionally allocated MFP funds that are constitutionally allocated to parish and city school systems to new charter schools outside the parish or city school system, i.e., New Type 2 charter schools. Additionally, the plaintiffs contended SCR 55(II)(B) unconstitutionally diverts the local portion of the per-pupil amount mandated in the MFP. IPSB, not LAE, also sought damages for all MFP funds which defendants allegedly unlawfully diverted from IPSB to New Type 2 charter schools.

SCR 55 dictates that MFP funds shall be paid to New Type 2 charter schools. The provisions of SCR 55 to which the plaintiffs object state, in pertinent part:

II. FORMULA CALCULATIONS FOR STATE-APPROVED PUBLIC SCHOOLS
....
B. NEW TYPE 2 CHARTER SCHOOLS
A New Type 2 [c]harter school is a Type 2 [c]harter school[4 ] approved after July 1, 2008 by the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.
1. State Cost Allocation.
a. Any New Type 2 [c]harter [s]chool shall annually be provided a State Cost Allocation as determined by the formula contained in R.S. 7:3995.
b. The State Cost Allocation equals the number of students multiplied by the average State Cost Allocation Per *303Pupil for the system in which the student resides.
c. Mid-Year Adjustments shall adhere to the guidelines established in this document.
2. Local Cost Allocation.
a. Any New Type 2 [c]harter school shall annually be provided a Local Cost Allocation by applying the formula contained in R.S. 17:3995.
b. The Local Cost Allocation equals the number of students multiplied by the Local Cost Allocation Per Pupil for the system in which the student resides.
c. One exception to R.S. 17:3995 is that the Local Cost allocation will be funded with a transfer of the MFP monthly amount representing the Local Cost Allocation from the city or parish school system in which the attending students reside.
d. The city or parish where students attending the New Type 2 [c]harter school reside is the local taxing authority and shall provide the local support for the students.
e. Mid-Year Adjustments will adhere to the guidelines established in this document.
....
4. Where student attendance is from multiple school systems, the Department of Education shall determine the Local Cost Allocation based on students reported by the schools. The student membership count of the New Type 2 charter schools shall be included in the membership count of the city or parish school board in which the student resides to determine the Local Cost Allocation.
5. In the first year of operation, a New Type 2 [c]harter school shall be allocated funding based on an estimated student count since a February 1 student count does not exist. The allocation will be finalized based on the October 1 student count.
6. The exclusion of any portion of local revenues specifically dedicated by the legislature or by voter approval to capital outlay or debt service shall be applicable only to a charter school housed in a facility or facilities provided by the district in which the charter school is located.

SCR 55(II)(B).

After a three-day trial, the district court entered a judgment in favor of defendants, dismissing plaintiffs' claims. In oral reasons, the district court ruled that SCR 55(II)(B) does not violate the constitution. The district court first determined that Type 2 charter schools are public schools, noting "all parties agree that the Type 2 charter schools are public schools, are public entities." Next, the district court considered whether or not the funds through the MFP go to New Type 2 charter schools, as defendants contend, or if the constitution says the funds through the MFP go only to the city and parish school systems, as plaintiffs assert. The district court rejected plaintiffs' assertion, focusing on the word "public" in La. Const. art. VIII, § 13 (B). The district court found the MFP formula adopted by BESE does not violate La. Const. art.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
248 So. 3d 299, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/iberville-parish-school-board-v-louisiana-state-board-of-elementary-and-la-2018.