§ 18A:46-31 — Powers, duties of special services school district board of education.

3. a. Any school established pursuant to P.L.1971, c.271 (C.18A:46-29 et al.) shall accept all eligible pupils within the county, so far as facilities permit. Pupils residing outside the county may be accepted should facilities be available only after provision has been made for all eligible pupils within the county. Any child accepted shall be classified pursuant to chapter 46 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes. b. The board of education of any county special services school district may receive such funds as may be appropriated by the county pursuant to section 13 of P.L.1971, c.271 (C.18A:46-41) and shall be entitled to collect and receive from the sending districts in which the pupils attending the county special services school reside, for the tuition of those pupils, a sum not to exceed the actual cost per pupil as determined for each special education program or for the special services school district, according to rules prescribed by the commissioner and approved by the State board. Whenever funds have been appropriated by the county, the county special services school district may charge a fee in addition to tuition for any pupils who are not residents of the county. The fee shall not exceed the amount of the county's per pupil appropriation to the county special services school district. For each special education program or for the special services school district, the tuition shall be at the same rate per pupil for each sending district whether within or without the county. Ten percent of the tuition amount and the nonresident fee amount, if any, shall be paid on the first of each month from September to June to the receiving district by each sending district. The annual aggregate amount of all tuition may be anticipated by the board of education of the county special services school district with respect to the annual budget of the county special services school district. The amounts of all annual payments or tuition to be paid by any other school district shall be raised in each year in the annual budget of the other school district and paid to the county special services school district. Tuition charged to the resident district shall be deducted from the resident district's State aid and transferred directly to the county special services district by the Department of Education according to procedures established by the commissioner. The transfers shall equal 1/20th of the tuition charged and shall occur on the same schedule of State aid payments for the resident districts. Beginning in May of the preceding year the county special services district shall report to the department and the resident districts the current enrollments and tuition rates by district. Enrollment changes reported at least 30 days in advance of a scheduled transfer shall be honored. Unless specifically designated, county special services school districts shall not receive State aid under the provisions of P.L.2007, c.260 (C.18A:7F-43 et al.). The county special services general fund budget, exclusive of any county contribution, shall not exceed the general fund budget, exclusive of any county contribution, in the prebudget year adjusted by the CPI or three percent, whichever is greater, plus an enrollment factor. An undesignated general fund balance of 10 percent of the general fund budget exclusive of tuition adjustments of prior years may be maintained. For the years 1997-98 through 2001-2002, State aid shall be provided to fund tuition losses when placements drop by more than five percent between the budget year and prebudget year. State aid shall equal the difference between 95 percent of the prebudget year enrollment on May 1 preceding the prebudget year multiplied by the budget year tuition rate and actual enrollments on May 1 preceding the budget year multiplied by the budget year tuition rate. c. The board of education of any county special services school district, with the approval of the board of chosen freeholders of the county, may provide for the establishment, maintenance and operation of dormitory and other boarding care facilities for pupils in conjunction with any one or more of its schools for special services, and the board shall provide for the establishment, maintenance and operation of such health care services and facilities for the pupils as the board shall deem necessary. d. (Deleted by amendment, P.L.1991, c.62). Amended 1990, c.52, s.60; 1991, c.62, s.23; 1996, c.138, s.77; 2007, c.260, s.73.