Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Charter School Funding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Senate narrowly approves charter school funding amendment that shifts local replacement percentages
Summary
Senate Bill 202, which revises the local replacement percentage of property-tax revenue that follows a student to charter schools (moving from 25% and phasing toward a higher share), passed the Senate by a narrow margin after floor questions about district impacts and fiscal details.
The Utah Senate approved Senate Bill 202 on third reading after debate about how much local property-tax revenue should follow a student who enrolls in a charter school.
Sponsor Senator H. Stevenson said the bill corrects a prior mistake and sets a uniform percentage of local funding that follows a charter school student; the measure starts at 25% of local property-tax revenue (outside debt service) and would increase over time toward a higher threshold (the sponsor described a phased approach that could reach 50% in the long run). Stevenson said he distributed a chart showing how the change would affect districts differently depending on their property-tax revenue per student.
Senators asked whether the percentage would apply uniformly and how it would affect districts with few charter students. Stevenson confirmed it would be proportional to the number of resident students who actually attend a charter school and that districts with few charter students would see only modest changes. Senator Jones requested more fiscal detail and the clerk noted fiscal notes were referenced during debate.
On the roll call the clerk announced the bill received 15 yeas, 12 nays and 2 absences; the bill will be read for a third time following the announced outcome.
End of coverage: SB202 passes the Senate narrowly; sponsors said charts and district-level fiscal breakdowns can be provided for further review.
