1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to education; providing for a study to examine the operating cost 
1.3 	differential of school districts in the state.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1.  OPERATING COST DIFFERENTIAL STUDY, DEPARTMENT OF 
1.6 	EDUCATION.
 1.7 	(a) The commissioner of education shall request assistance from the Regional 
1.8 	Educational Laboratory Midwest to study the differential cost of operating a school district 
1.9 	in Minnesota using sound economic and statistical reasoning.
1.10 	(b) The commissioner shall initiate the request by July 15, 2009.
1.11 	(c) The Department of Education must provide the Regional Educational Laboratory 
1.12 	Midwest with data necessary to complete the study.

1.13 	Sec. 2. OPERATING COST DIFFERENTIAL STUDY.
 1.14 	(a) The Regional Educational Laboratory Midwest shall identify the cost of 
1.15 	operating a school district in different regions across the state. As part of the study, the 
1.16 	Regional Educational Laboratory Midwest shall: 
1.17 	(1) consider all districts in the state individually and regionally based on 
1.18 	demography, economic region, geography, and any other region as determined by the 
1.19 	contractor to better illustrate the cost differential observed; 
1.20 	(2) examine the economic factors that contribute to the costs underlying the basic 
1.21 	operation of a school district including land costs, salaries and benefits, hourly wages, 
1.22 	health care costs, transportation costs, energy costs, telecommunication costs, sparsity, 
1.23 	housing prices, administrative costs, and any other factor which the contractor believes 
2.1 	through sound economic reasoning contributes to the underlying cost of operating a 
2.2 	school district; and
2.3 	(3) construct a study that controls for factors that vary across school districts 
2.4 	in the state including: class size, teacher credentials and education, limited English 
2.5 	proficiency, poverty, mobility, athletic opportunities available to each student, Advanced 
2.6 	Placement course offerings, postsecondary education options, International Baccalaureate 
2.7 	opportunities, college in the schools offerings, foreign language options, academic clubs, 
2.8 	extracurricular opportunities, and any other criteria for which the contractor believes 
2.9 	through sound economic reasoning differentially alters the quality and thus the operating 
2.10 	cost of any particular school district. 
2.11 	(b) The Regional Educational Laboratory Midwest must report on the findings to the 
2.12 	legislative committees having jurisdiction over kindergarten through grade 12 education 
2.13 	before March 15, 2010.