2007 Minnesota Statutes

124D.11 REVENUE FOR A CHARTER SCHOOL.
    Subdivision 1. General education revenue. (a) General education revenue must be paid
to a charter school as though it were a district. The general education revenue for each adjusted
marginal cost pupil unit is the state average general education revenue per pupil unit, plus the
referendum equalization aid allowance in the pupil's district of residence, minus an amount
equal to the product of the formula allowance according to section 126C.10, subdivision 2,
times .0485, calculated without basic skills revenue, extended time revenue, alternative teacher
compensation revenue, transition revenue, and transportation sparsity revenue, plus basic skills
revenue, extended time revenue, basic alternative teacher compensation aid according to section
126C.10, subdivision 34, and transition revenue as though the school were a school district. The
general education revenue for each extended time marginal cost pupil unit equals $4,378.
(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), for charter schools in the first year of operation, general
education revenue shall be computed using the number of adjusted pupil units in the current
fiscal year.
    Subd. 2. Transportation revenue. Transportation revenue must be paid to a charter school
that provides transportation services according to section 124D.10, subdivision 16, according to
this subdivision. Transportation aid shall equal transportation revenue.
In addition to the revenue under subdivision 1, a charter school providing transportation
services must receive general education aid equal to the sum of the product of (i) an amount equal
to the product of the formula allowance according to section 126C.10, subdivision 2, times
.0485, plus the transportation sparsity allowance for the school district in which the charter
school is located times (ii) the adjusted marginal cost pupil units, plus the product of $223 times
the extended time marginal cost pupil units.
    Subd. 3. Use of total operating capital revenue. Notwithstanding section 126C.10,
subdivision 14 , a charter school may use total operating capital revenue for any purpose related to
the school.
    Subd. 4. Building lease aid. When a charter school finds it economically advantageous to
rent or lease a building or land for any instructional purposes and it determines that the total
operating capital revenue under section 126C.10, subdivision 13, is insufficient for this purpose, it
may apply to the commissioner for building lease aid for this purpose. The commissioner must
review and either approve or deny a lease aid application using the following criteria:
(1) the reasonableness of the price based on current market values;
(2) the extent to which the lease conforms to applicable state laws and rules; and
(3) the appropriateness of the proposed lease in the context of the space needs and financial
circumstances of the charter school.
A charter school must not use the building lease aid it receives for custodial, maintenance service,
utility, or other operating costs. The amount of building lease aid per pupil unit served for a
charter school for any year shall not exceed the lesser of (a) 90 percent of the approved cost or (b)
the product of the pupil units served for the current school year times the greater of the charter
school's building lease aid per pupil unit served for fiscal year 2003, excluding the adjustment
under Laws 2002, chapter 392, article 6, section 4, or $1,200.
    Subd. 5. Special education aid. (a) Except as provided in subdivision 2, special education aid
must be paid to a charter school according to section 125A.76, as though it were a school district.
(b) For fiscal year 2006, the charter school may charge tuition to the district of residence
as follows:
(1) if the charter school does not receive general education revenue on behalf of the student
according to subdivision 1, tuition shall be charged as provided in section 125A.11; or
(2) if the charter school receives general education revenue on behalf of the student
according to subdivision 1, tuition shall be charged as provided in section 127A.47, subdivision 7,
paragraph (d).
(c) For fiscal year 2007 and later, the special education aid paid to the charter school shall be
adjusted as follows:
(1) if the charter school does not receive general education revenue on behalf of the student
according to subdivision 1, the aid shall be adjusted as provided in section 125A.11; or
(2) if the charter school receives general education revenue on behalf of the student
according to subdivision 1, the aid shall be adjusted as provided in section 127A.47, subdivision
7 , paragraph (d).
    Subd. 6. Other aid, grants, revenue. (a) A charter school is eligible to receive other aids,
grants, and revenue according to chapters 120A to 129C, as though it were a district.
(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), a charter school may not receive aid, a grant, or revenue
if a levy is required to obtain the money, or if the aid, grant, or revenue replaces levy revenue that
is not general education revenue, except as otherwise provided in this section.
(c) Federal aid received by the state must be paid to the school, if it qualifies for the aid
as though it were a school district.
(d) A charter school may receive money from any source for capital facilities needs. In the
year-end report to the commissioner of education, the charter school shall report the total amount
of funds received from grants and other outside sources.
    Subd. 7. Use of state money. Money received from the state may not be used to purchase
land or buildings. The school may own land and buildings if obtained through nonstate sources.
    Subd. 8. Start-up costs. During the first two years of a charter school's operation, the charter
school is eligible for aid to pay for start-up costs and additional operating costs. Start-up cost aid
equals the greater of:
(1) $50,000 per charter school; or
(2) $500 times the charter school's pupil units served for that year.
    Subd. 9. Payment of aids to charter schools. (a) Notwithstanding section 127A.45,
subdivision 3 , aid payments for the current fiscal year to a charter school not in its first year of
operation shall be of an equal amount on each of the 23 payment dates. A charter school in its first
year of operation shall receive, on its first payment date, ten percent of its cumulative amount
guaranteed for the year and 22 payments of an equal amount thereafter the sum of which shall
equal the current year aid payment percentage multiplied by the cumulative amount guaranteed.
(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), for a charter school ceasing operation prior to the end
of a school year, the current year aid payment percentage multiplied by the amount due for
the school year may be paid to the school after audit of prior fiscal year and current fiscal year
pupil counts. For a charter school ceasing operations prior to, or at the end of, a school year,
notwithstanding section 127A.45, subdivision 3, preliminary final payments may be made after
audit of pupil counts, monitoring of special education expenditures, and documentation of lease
expenditures for the final year of operation. Final payment may be made upon receipt of audited
financial statements under section 123B.77, subdivision 3.
(c) Notwithstanding section 127A.45, subdivision 3, and paragraph (a), 80 percent of the
start-up cost aid under subdivision 8 shall be paid within 45 days after the first day of student
attendance for that school year.
(d) In order to receive state aid payments under this subdivision, a charter school in its first
three years of operation must submit a school calendar in the form and manner requested by the
department and a quarterly report to the Department of Education. The report must list each
student by grade, show the student's start and end dates, if any, with the charter school, and for
any student participating in a learning year program, the report must list the hours and times of
learning year activities. The report must be submitted not more than two weeks after the end of
the calendar quarter to the department. The department must develop a Web-based reporting form
for charter schools to use when submitting enrollment reports. A charter school in its fourth and
subsequent year of operation must submit a school calendar and enrollment information to the
department in the form and manner requested by the department.
(e) Notwithstanding sections 317A.701 to 317A.791, upon closure of a charter school and
satisfaction of creditors, cash and investment balances remaining shall be returned to the state.
History: 1991 c 265 art 9 s 43; 1993 c 224 art 9 s 31; 1994 c 647 art 3 s 11; art 9 s 10;
1Sp1995 c 3 art 8 s 4; 1996 c 412 art 7 s 5-8; 1997 c 7 art 1 s 52; 1Sp1997 c 4 art 2 s 4; art 5 s
13-15; 1998 c 397 art 2 s 89-92,164; art 11 s 3; 1998 c 398 art 1 s 10-13; art 5 s 55; 1999 c 241
art 1 s 2; art 5 s 12-14; 2000 c 254 s 17; 2000 c 489 art 2 s 4; art 6 s 24; 1Sp2001 c 6 art 2 s
27,28; art 8 s 2; 2002 c 374 art 1 s 1; 1Sp2003 c 9 art 2 s 26-29; art 5 s 5; 2004 c 294 art 2 s
14; 1Sp2005 c 5 art 2 s 63-65; art 3 s 5; 2006 c 263 art 2 s 16