Chapter 896 Oregon Laws 2001

AN ACT

HB 2300

Relating to school district local option equalization; appropriating money; and prescribing an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:

SECTION 1. The Legislative Assembly declares that it is the policy of this state to provide substantial equity in opportunity among school districts in which electors support local option taxes for primary and secondary education. This policy will be accomplished by providing grant supplements to those districts that enact local option taxes and that have lower property wealth per student.

SECTION 2. (1) As used in this section:

(a) “Extended ADMw” means the district extended weighted average daily membership computed under ORS 327.013 (6).

(b) “Local option tax rate” means the amount of local option taxes imposed by the school district for the current fiscal year, after compression under ORS 310.150 and after subtraction of the amount of school district local option taxes that are distributed to an urban renewal agency pursuant to ORS 457.440, divided by the assessed value of the school district.

(c) “School district” means a common or union high school district.

(d) “Target district” means the school district that, for the fiscal year prior to the year for which grants are being determined, had a total assessed value of taxable property per district extended ADMw that was greater than all but 25 percent of the school districts in this state for that prior fiscal year. The Department of Education shall determine which school district is the target district for a fiscal year, based on the total assessed values of school districts reported to the Department of Education by the Department of Revenue for the fiscal year prior to the year for which grants are being determined under this section.

(2) A school district shall receive a local option equalization grant for a fiscal year:

(a) In which the school district imposes local option taxes pursuant to ORS 280.040 to 280.145; and

(b) For which the total assessed value of taxable property per extended ADMw of the school district for the prior fiscal year does not exceed the total assessed value of taxable property per extended ADMw of the target district for the prior fiscal year.

(3) The amount of the local option equalization grant shall equal the lesser of:

(a) The product of the local option tax rate of the school district for the current fiscal year ´ (total assessed value per extended ADMw of the target district for the prior fiscal year - total assessed value per extended ADMw of the school district for the prior fiscal year)´ the extended ADMw of the school district for the prior fiscal year; or

(b) The amount obtained by subtracting the local option tax imposed by the school district for the current fiscal year, after compression under ORS 310.150, from the lesser of:

(A) Ten percent of the combined total for the school district of the general purpose grant, the transportation grant and the facility grant of the school district for the current fiscal year; or

(B) $500 multiplied by the extended ADMw of the school district for the current fiscal year.

(4) If the amount computed under subsection (3)(b) of this section is zero or less, a local option equalization grant may not be made to the school district for the fiscal year.

(5) As soon as is practicable after school districts have certified property taxes to the assessor under ORS 310.060, the Department of Revenue shall report to the Department of Education a list of school districts certifying local option taxes for the current fiscal year and the local option tax rates for those districts. The amount of each local option equalization grant shall be calculated by the Department of Education.

(6) If the election authorizing the imposition of a local option tax is held after the start of a biennium in which the local option tax is to be imposed, the local option equalization grant for a fiscal year of that biennium shall be determined as otherwise prescribed in this section, but may not be paid to the school district until the first fiscal year of the next succeeding biennium.

SECTION 3. (1) The Local Option Equalization Grants Account is created in the General Fund.

(2) From the biennial legislative appropriation to the Local Option Equalization Grants Account to fund the local option equalization grant program described in section 2 of this 2001 Act, amounts necessary to make the grant payments are continuously appropriated to the Department of Education for the purpose of making these payments.

(3) The department shall make estimated local option equalization grant payments to school districts entitled to such payments under section 2 of this 2001 Act on or before March 31 of each fiscal year.

(4) If the estimated local option equalization grant payment does not equal the actual local option equalization grant to which a school district is entitled under section 2 of this 2001 Act, the department shall determine the increase or decrease needed to correct the amount of the grant and may incorporate the correction into a state school fund grant made to the district. The correction may be made in any state school fund grant made during the fiscal year in which the estimated grant payment was made or in the next succeeding fiscal year.

(5) If the amount of moneys available in the Local Option Equalization Grants Account is insufficient to make the payments required under section 2 of this 2001 Act and this section, the payments shall be proportionally reduced so that the state does not accrue a debt in making these payments.

SECTION 4. Sections 2 and 3 of this 2001 Act apply to fiscal years beginning on or after July 1, 2001.

SECTION 5. In addition to and not in lieu of any other appropriation, there is appropriated to the Local Option Equalization Grants Account, for the biennium beginning July 1, 2001, out of the General Fund, the amount of $600,000, which may be expended by the Department of Education for the purposes of sections 2 and 3 of this 2001 Act.

SECTION 6. This 2001 Act takes effect on the 91st day after the date on which the regular session of the Seventy-first Legislative Assembly adjourns sine die.

Approved by the Governor August 1, 2001

Filed in the office of Secretary of State August 2, 2001

Effective date October 6, 2001

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