§ 20-A §15672 — Definitions

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings.
1.
Allocation year.
"Allocation year" means the year that subsidy is distributed to school administrative units.
1-A.
Adjusted total cost of components of essential programs and services.
1-B.
Base year.
"Base year" means the 2nd year prior to the allocation year.
1-C.
Bus purchase costs.
"Bus purchase costs" includes expenditures for bus purchase payments approved by the commissioner and made during the year prior to the allocation year.
1-D.
Career and technical education costs.
2.
Clerical staff.
"Clerical staff" means full-time equivalent public school secretaries, as documented in the department's database.
2-A.
Debt service costs.
"Debt service costs," for subsidy purposes, includes:
2-B.
Debt service adjustment mill rate.
"Debt service adjustment mill rate" is the mill rate derived by dividing 45% of the debt service costs by the property fiscal capacity for all school administrative units.
3.
Economically disadvantaged students.
"Economically disadvantaged students" means students who are included in the department's count of students who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals or free milk or both.
4.
Education technician.
"Education technician" means a full-time equivalent public teacher aide or education technician I, associate teacher or education technician II or assistant teacher or education technician III but not a special education technician I, II or III, as documented in the department's database.
5.
Elementary free or reduced-price meals percentage.
"Elementary free or reduced-price meals percentage" means the percentage, as determined by the commissioner, that reflects either:
6.
Elementary grades.
"Elementary grades" means public preschool programs to grade 8.
7.
Elementary school level.
"Elementary school level" means the grades from public preschool programs to grade 5.
7-A.
EPS per-pupil rate.
"EPS per-pupil rate" means the rate calculated under section 15676 or 15676‑A, as applicable.
7-B.
English learner.
"English learner" means a student who has a primary or home language other than English, as determined by a language use survey developed by the department; who is not yet proficient in English, as determined by a state-approved English language proficiency assessment; and who satisfies the definition of an English learner under the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, 20 United States Code, Chapter 70.
8.
Essential programs and services.
"Essential programs and services" means those educational resources that are identified in this chapter that enable all students to meet the standards in the 8 content standard subject areas and goals of the system of learning results established in chapter 222.
9.
Essential programs and services transition percentage.
9-A.
Gifted and talented costs.
"Gifted and talented costs" means the cost of programs for gifted and talented students that have been approved by the commissioner.
10.
Grade 9 to 12 portion.
"Grade 9 to 12 portion" means those pupils in the secondary grades or high school level.
11.
Guidance staff.
"Guidance staff" means full-time equivalent public guidance counselors, directors of guidance or school social workers, as documented in the department's database.
12.
Health staff.
"Health staff" means full-time equivalent public school nurses, as documented in the department's database.
13.
High school level.
"High school level" means grade 9 to grade 12.
13-A.
Institutional resident.
"Institutional resident" means a person between 5 years of age and 20 years of age who is attending a public school of the school administrative unit and who is committed or otherwise legally admitted to and residing at a state-operated institution. "Institutional resident" does not include students attending private facilities, regardless of the means of placement.
14.
Income weight.
14-A.
Kindergarten.
"Kindergarten" means kindergarten or a prekindergarten early education program for students who are at least 4 years of age on October 15th of the school year.
15.
Kindergarten to grade 8 portion.
"Kindergarten to grade 8 portion" means those pupils in the elementary grades or a combination of the elementary school level and middle school level.
16.
Kindergarten to grade 2 student.
"Kindergarten to grade 2 student" means a student in any grade from prekindergarten to grade 2 who is at least 4 years old on October 15th of the school year.
17.
Librarian.
"Librarian" means a full-time equivalent public librarian or media specialist, as documented in the department's database.
18.
Limited English proficiency student.
18-A.
Major capital costs.
"Major capital costs" means costs relating to school construction projects, as defined in section 15901.
19.
Media assistant.
"Media assistant" means a full-time equivalent public librarian aide or library technician I, librarian assistant or library technician II or librarian associate or library technician III, as documented in the department's database.
20.
Middle school level.
"Middle school level" means grade 6 to grade 8.
20-A.
Minor capital costs.
"Minor capital costs" means costs relating to plant maintenance, minor remodeling, site development or the purchase of land not in conjunction with a construction project.
21.
Municipality.
"Municipality" means a city, town or organized plantation.
21-A.
Other subsidizable costs.
"Other subsidizable costs" means those costs identified in section 15681‑A. These costs are part of the total operating allocation under section 15683.
21-B.
Portable, temporary classroom space.
"Portable, temporary classroom space" means one or more mobile or modular buildings that are at least partially constructed off site and that are designed to be moved to other sites with a minimum of disassembly and reassembly.
22.
Per-pupil guarantee.
22-A.
Predicted per-pupil transportation costs.
"Predicted per-pupil transportation costs" means the greater of:
23.
Property fiscal capacity.
"Property fiscal capacity" means the average of the certified state valuations for the 3 most recent years prior to the most recently certified state valuation or the certified state valuation for the most recent prior year, whichever is lower.
24.
Property weight.
25.
School administrative staff.
"School administrative staff" means full-time equivalent public school principals and assistant principals, as documented in the department's database.
25-A.
School administrative unit.
"School administrative unit" means a school administrative unit as defined by section 1, subsection 26, paragraphs A to G.
26.
School administrative unit's local contribution to EPS per-pupil rate.
"School administrative unit's local contribution to the EPS per-pupil rate" means the funds that a school administrative unit provides for each subsidizable pupil who resides in that unit.
27.
School administrative unit's state contribution to EPS per-pupil rate.
"School administrative unit's state contribution to the EPS per-pupil rate" means the funds that the State provides to a school administrative unit for each subsidizable pupil who resides in that unit.
28.
School level.
"School level" means elementary level, middle school level and high school level.
29.
School level teaching staff.
"School level teaching staff" means full-time equivalent public classroom teachers, itinerant classroom teachers and special teachers of reading or literacy specialists excluding special education teachers and career and technical education teachers, as documented in the department's database.
30.
Secondary grades.
"Secondary grades" means grade 9 to grade 12.
30-A.
Special education costs.
"Special education costs" for subsidy purposes includes:
30-B.
State-operated institution.
"State-operated institution" means any residential facility or institution that is operated by the Department of Health and Human Services or a school operated by the Department of Education.
31.
State share percentage.
"State share percentage" means the percentage of the state contribution determined under section 15688, subsection 3‑A, paragraph D divided by the total cost determined in section 15688, subsection 1.
31-A.
State subsidy.
"State subsidy" means the total of the state contribution determined under section 15688, subsection 3‑A, paragraph D and any applicable adjustment under section 15689.
31-B.
Subsidizable costs.
"Subsidizable costs" includes the costs described in paragraphs A to C and used to calculate the total allocation amount:
32.
Subsidizable pupils.
"Subsidizable pupils" means all school level pupils who reside in a school administrative unit and who are educated at public expense at a public school or at a private school approved for tuition purposes.
32-A.
Total allocation.
"Total allocation" means the total of the operating allocation as described in section 15683 and the debt service allocation as described in section 15683‑A.
32-B.
Total cost of components of essential programs and services.
"Total cost of the components of essential programs and services" means the total of the following components:
32-C.
Transportation operating costs.
"Transportation operating costs" means all costs incurred in the transportation of pupils in kindergarten to grade 12, including lease costs for bus garage and maintenance facilities and lease-purchase costs that the school administrative unit may apply to the purchase of bus garage and maintenance facilities, when the leases and lease-purchase agreements have been approved by the commissioner, but excluding the costs of bus purchases and excluding all costs not associated with transporting students from home to school and back home each day. The amount includable for determining the subsidy for a school administrative unit for lease-purchase of bus garage and maintenance facilities may not exceed the amount for the lease of a comparable facility.
32-D.
Vocational education costs.
32-E.
Year.
"Year" means a fiscal year starting July 1st and ending June 30th of the succeeding year.
33.
Year of funding.
"Year of funding" means the fiscal year during which state subsidies are disbursed to school administrative units, except as specified in section 15005, subsection 1.

Legislative History

PL 2003, c. 504, §A6 (NEW). PL 2003, c. 712, §12 (AMD). RR 2005, c. 1, §3 (COR). PL 2005, c. 2, §D36 (AMD). PL 2005, c. 2, §§D72,74 (AFF). PL 2005, c. 12, §WW4 (AMD). PL 2005, c. 12, §WW18 (AFF). PL 2005, c. 397, §D3 (REV). PL 2005, c. 519, §§J1,AAAA3,4 (AMD). PL 2005, c. 662, §A41 (AMD). PL 2007, c. 58, §3 (REV). PL 2007, c. 111, §§3-5 (AMD). PL 2007, c. 141, §§13, 14 (AMD). PL 2007, c. 668, §35 (AMD). PL 2011, c. 655, Pt. C, §6 (AMD). PL 2011, c. 679, §§27, 28 (AMD). PL 2013, c. 167, Pt. B, §1 (AMD). PL 2013, c. 203, §1 (AMD). PL 2017, c. 171, §12 (AMD). PL 2017, c. 284, Pt. C, §§25-28 (AMD). PL 2017, c. 284, Pt. VVVVV, §9 (AMD). PL 2017, c. 381, §16 (AMD). PL 2017, c. 407, Pt. A, §63 (AMD). PL 2019, c. 398, §§30, 31 (AMD). PL 2019, c. 501, §10 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 348, §27 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 571, §§21-27 (AMD).