METHOD FOR APPROPRIATION AND ALLOCATION OF FUNDS FOR MAINTENANCE, SUPPORT AND OPERATION OF FREE SCHOOLS OF THE STATE
AN ACT PROVIDING A METHOD FOR THE APPROPRIATION AND ALLOCATION OF FUNDS FOR THE MAINTENANCE, SUPPORT AND OPERATION OF THE FREE PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF THE STATE; AND GRANTING TO THE PERMANENT BUDGET COMMISSION AND THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION CERTAIN POWERS AND AUTHORITY TO REGULATE THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE FUNDS APPROPRIATED.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Delaware in General Assembly met:
Section 1. After the biennium ending June 30, 1951, appropriations for the support, maintenance and operation of the free public schools of the State shall be in two divisions: Division I shall include appropriations designated for the purpose of paying the employees of the various school districts of the state in accordance with the existing salary schedules; Division II shall include the appropriations for all other school costs, except those for debt service and the transportation of pupils.
Section 2. A. The funds appropriated to each school district for salaries included in Division I shall be determined in accordance with the aforesaid salary schedules; provided that no State funds shall be appropriated to any school district to provide salaries for teachers in excess of one teacher for each "unit" of pupils, as hereinafter defined, in such school district; and provided further that no State funds shall be appropriated to any school district to provide salaries for more teachers than shall actually be employed in such school district.
B. The funds appropriated to each school district for expenses included in Division II shall be determined by providing a sum, which shall be uniform for all school districts throughout
the State, for each "unit" of pupils, as hereinafter defined, in such school district.
C. Funds for the maintenance and operation of all one, two and three teacher schools shall be appropriated to the State Board of Education as follows:
The salaries included in Division I shall be in accordance with the existing salary schedules, but the number of teachers shall not be restricted to one teacher for each "unit" of pupils if the State Board of Education finds it necessary and desirable to employ more teachers in any such one, two or three teacher school.
(1) The expenses included in Division II shall be determined by providing a sum, which shall be the same as that provided for such expenses of other school districts throughout the State, for each "unit" of pupils, as hereinafter defined, in each such one, two or three teacher school.
D. The State Board of Education shall allocate the funds so appropriated for one, two and three teacher schools to each of the said schools, as such funds are needed. The said funds so allocated shall be used only for the purposes for which they shall be appropriated, provided that the State Board of Education may transfer any funds allocated to one such school to another such school, as the needs of the said schools shall require.
E. A "unit" of pupils for the purposes of this Act shall be twenty-five pupils, or major fraction thereof, in grades one to six inclusive, or twenty pupils, or major fraction thereof, in grades seven to twelve inclusive; a major fraction shall be considered to be any fraction greater than one-half. The number of units in each school district shall be calculated on the total enrollment of such school district at the end of the school year preceding the convening of the General Assembly.
Section 3. A. In order to carry out the provisions of this Act as it applies in Division I to persons paid in accordance with the existing salary schedules, and in Division II as it applies in section 2. B. of this Act, appropriations to the school districts
and to the State Board of Education for support of one, two and three teacher schools shall be in the following form:
Name of School District (or State
Board of Education for One, Two First Year of Second Year of
and Three Teacher Schools.) Biennium Biennium
A. Administrative
B. Clerical
C. Instructional
A. Operation
A. Health
Division II. OTHER COSTS--
B. No amounts of the allotment to any district shall be transferred from one subdivision A. B. C. D. or E of Division I to any other such subdivision of Division I or to Division II, or from Division II to any subdivision of Division I.
C. The number of "units" of each school district shall be certified to the Permanent Budget Commission by the State Board of Education on or before the Fifteenth day of September biennially in the year which next precedes the convening of the General Assembly. At the time of such certification the State Board of Education shall also recommend to the Permanent Budget Commission the sum which shall be appropriated for each "unit," and shall make available to the Permanent Budget Commission all data on which such recommended figure is based. The Permanent Budget Commission shall establish the sum which shall be appropriated to each "unit" and shall use such sum as the basis for the appropriation specified in Sections 2. B. and 2. C.
D. The Permanent Budget Commission shall also recommend the appropriation of a sufficient reserve which shall be made available by the Permanent Budget Commission during the biennium to school districts which have been certified by the State Board of Education to have an increase in the number of "units" over the number of "units" in existence at the time of the certification to the Permanent Budget Commission as provided in 3. C.
Section 4. Nothing contained in this Act shall be interpreted to prevent any Board of Education or Board of School Trustees from paying an additional amount of salary to any employee, provided the additional amount be supplied by other funds than those supplied by State appropriations.
Section 5. In the case of any consolidation as defined in 2634. Sec. 12. and 2636. Sec. 14. of Chapter 71, of the Revised Code of Delaware, 1935, the Permanent Budget Commission is hereby empowered to transfer the unexpended balance, or any part thereof of any appropriation under this Act for the closed district or districts to the appropriation of the district or districts with which any such closed districts are consolidated.
Section 6. Any amount of money derived from the income from the State School Fund shall, for the purposes of this Act, be considered as received by the State Treasurer and thereupon act to reduce to that extent the total amount to be paid out of the General Fund of this State for the purposes of meeting the expenses incurred in accordance with allowances for appropriations provided in this Act.
Section 7. All Acts or parts of Acts inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed to the extent of such inconsistency.
Section 8. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, or part of this Act shall, for any reason, be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder of this Act, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.