Session of 2000
HOUSE BILL No. 2796
By Committee on Education
2-2
10 AN ACT
concerning school districts; requiring the development and
11 maintenance of early
childhood education programs; providing for the
12 funding of such
programs; authorizing the collection of fees for main-
13 tenance of full-day
kindergarten; amending K.S.A. 1999 Supp. 72-6409
14 and repealing the
existing section.
15
16 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the
State of Kansas:
17 New Section
1. As used in this act:
18 (a) "Board" means
the board of education of any school district.
19 (b) "School
district" means any public school district organized and
20 operating under the laws of this state.
21 (c) "Early
childhood education program" means a program consisting
22 of a prekindergarten program for at-risk
four year old children and a full-
23 day kindergarten program for at-risk and
other children. An early child-
24 hood education program shall be available
to children at the option of
25 their parents or guardian. The
prekindergarten program shall be available
26 to children for not more than one year.
27 (d) "At-risk
children" means children who have attained the age of
28 four years, have not completed
kindergarten, and are eligible for free
29 meals under the national school lunch
act.
30 (e) "State board"
means the state board of education.
31 New Sec.
2. (a) The board of every school district: (1) Shall
develop
32 and maintain an early childhood education
program for children who are
33 residents of the school district; (2) may
enter into cooperative or interlocal
34 agreements with one or more other boards
for the development and
35 maintenance of an early childhood education
program; (3) may contract
36 with private, nonprofit corporations or
associations or with any public or
37 private agency or institution, whether
located within or outside the state,
38 for the provision of services which are
appropriate to an early childhood
39 education program; and (4) may apply for a
grant of state moneys for the
40 purpose of financing that portion of the
amount budgeted for mainte-
41 nance of the program that is not financed
from any other source provided
42 by law.
43 (b) In order to
be eligible to receive a grant of state moneys for the
2
1 development and maintenance of an
early childhood education program,
2 a board shall submit to the state
board an application for a grant and a
3 description of the program. The
application and description shall be pre-
4 pared in such form and manner as the
state board shall require and shall
5 be submitted at a time to be
determined and specified by the state board.
6 Approval by the state board of the
program and the application is pre-
7 requisite to the award of a grant.
Each board which is awarded a grant
8 under this act shall make such
periodic and special reports of statistical
9 and financial information to the
state board as it may request.
10 New Sec.
3. (a) The state board shall adopt rules and regulations
for
11 the administration of this act and
shall:
12 (1) Establish
standards and criteria for reviewing, evaluating and ap-
13 proving early childhood education programs
and applications of school
14 districts for grants;
15 (2) evaluate and
approve early childhood education programs;
16 (3) be
responsible for awarding grants to school districts; and
17 (4) request of
and receive from each school district which is awarded
18 a grant for development and maintenance of
an early childhood education
19 program reports containing information with
regard to the effectiveness
20 of the program.
21 (b) In evaluating
and approving early childhood education programs
22 for the award of grants to school
districts, the state board shall consider:
23 (1) The amounts
budgeted by school districts for the development
24 and maintenance of early childhood
education programs;
25 (2) the potential
effectiveness of the early childhood education pro-
26 grams for which applications for the grant
of state moneys are made; and
27
(3) comprehensiveness of the early childhood education
programs for
28 which applications for the grant of state
moneys are made.
29 (c) The amount of
a grant to a school district shall be determined by
30 the state board as provided in this
subsection. The state board shall: (1)
31 Determine the number of at-risk children
participating in the early child-
32 hood education program maintained by the
school district; (2) compute
33 50% of the amount of base state aid per
pupil prescribed for the current
34 school year under the school district
finance and quality performance act;
35 (3) multiply the amount computed under (2)
by the number of at-risk
36 children determined under (1). The product
is the amount of the grant
37 the school district is entitled to receive
for the school year. Moneys re-
38 ceived by a school district through the
award of a grant of state moneys
39 under this section shall be deposited in
the early childhood education
40 fund of the district.
41 New Sec.
4. There is hereby established in every school district an
42 early childhood education program fund,
which fund shall consist of all
43 moneys deposited therein or transferred
thereto according to law. Not-
3
1 withstanding any other provision of
law, all moneys received by the school
2 district from whatever source for an
early childhood education program
3 maintained under this act shall be
credited to the fund established by this
4 section. Amounts deposited in the
early childhood education program
5 fund shall be used exclusively for
the payment of expenses directly at-
6 tributable to the program.
7 New Sec.
5. The state board may provide any board, upon its request
8 therefor, with technical advice and
assistance regarding the development
9 and operation of an early childhood
education program or an application
10 for a grant of state moneys, and may make
studies and gather and dis-
11 seminate information regarding materials,
resources, procedures, and
12 personnel which are or may become available
to assist school districts in
13 the development and operation of
programs.
14 New Sec.
6. (a) Subject to the limitations specified in this
subsection,
15 the board of education of any school
district that maintains kindergarten
16 classes for a full school day consisting of
not less than six hours may
17 prescribe and collect fees to off-set the
costs incurred by the district as a
18 result of and directly attributable to
maintenance of such classes. Fees
19 for maintenance of kindergarten classes for
a full school day may be col-
20 lected only to the extent that the costs
attributable to maintenance of
21 such classes are in excess of the amount
for maintenance of kindergarten
22 that is financed from any other source
provided by law. Fees for the
23 maintenance of kindergarten classes for a
full school day may only be
24 assessed against and collected for pupils
who attend such classes on a
25 voluntary basis. No such fees may be
assessed against or collected for:
26 (1) Pupils who are required to attend
such classes in accordance with
27 the provisions of law, rules and
regulations of the state board of education
28 or policy of the board of education; or
(2) pupils who are exceptional
29 children who are required to attend such
classes in accordance with the
30 provisions of an individualized education
plan; or (3) pupils who are at-
31 risk children.
32 (b) Revenues from
fees collected by a board of education under this
33 section shall be deposited in the general
fund of the school district, shall
34 be considered reimbursements to the
district for the purpose of the
35 school district finance and quality
performance act, and may be expended
36 whether the same have been budgeted or not
and amounts so expended
37 shall not be considered operating
expenses.
38 Sec.
7. K.S.A. 1999 Supp. 72-6409 is hereby amended to read as
39 follows: 72-6409. (a) "General fund" means
the fund of a district from
40 which operating expenses are paid and in
which is deposited the proceeds
41 from the tax levied under K.S.A. 72-6431,
and amendments thereto, all
42 amounts of general state aid under this
act, payments under K.S.A. 72-
43 7105a, and amendments thereto, payments of
federal funds made avail-
4
1 able under the provisions of title I
of public law 874, except amounts
2 received for assistance in cases of
major disaster and amounts received
3 under the low-rent housing program,
and such other moneys as are pro-
4 vided by law.
5
(b) "Operating expenses" means the total expenditures and
lawful
6 transfers from the general fund of a
district during a school year for all
7 purposes, except expenditures for the
purposes specified in K.S.A. 72-
8 6430, and amendments thereto.
9
(c) "General fund budget" means the amount budgeted for
operating
10 expenses in the general fund of a
district.
11 (d) "Budget per
pupil" means the general fund budget of a district
12 divided by the enrollment of the
district.
13 (e) "Program
weighted fund" means and includes the following funds
14 of a district: Transportation fund,
vocational education fund, and bilingual
15 education fund.
16 (f) "Categorical
fund" means and includes the following funds of a
17 district: Special education fund, food
service fund, driver training fund,
18 adult education fund, adult supplementary
education fund, area voca-
19 tional school fund, inservice education
fund, parent education program
20 fund, summer program fund, extraordinary
school program fund, early
21 childhood education program fund,
and educational excellence grant pro-
22 gram fund.
23 Sec. 8. K.S.A. 1999 Supp.
72-6409 is hereby repealed.
24 Sec. 9. This act shall
take effect and be in force from and after its
25 publication in the statute book.