This is a facsimile of the original memorandum issued by the Waiver and Review Committee, State Allocation Board
WAIVER AND REVIEW COMMITTEE
STATE ALLOCATION BOARD (Outside Source)
1130 K Street, Suite 400
Sacramento, CA 95814
January 5, 2009
To: District Superintendents and Year-Round Education Representatitves
From: Fred Yeager, Assistant Director, California Department of Education
Subject: Annual Certifications and Waivers: "Substantial Enrollment" In Multitrack Year-Round Programs
The State Allocation Board (SAB) Waiver and Review Committee annually accepts elementary and unified school districts' certifications of compliance with the multitrack year-round education "substantial enrollment" requirement set forth in Education Code sections 17017.6 and 17017.7(c). The Committee also accepts annually school districts' requests for waivers of the "substantial enrollment" requirement pursuant to SAB regulations and policies.
With the passage of Senate Bill 50 (SB 50) and the beginning of the new School Facilities Program, all school districts filing new construction applications with the Office of Public School Construction on or after November 4, 1998, are subject to a multitrack year-round augmentation to their existing student capacity. This augmentation is the larger of:
- The multitrack year-round "substantial enrollment" reduction in eligibility, that is, the 6% or 8% increase in existing student capacity pursuant to SAB Regulation 1859.35, where the district does not qualify as a "substantially enrolled" district or for a waiver, or
- The highest number of students for which a school district has claimed multitrack year-round operational grants.
Schools on a multitrack year-round calendar that have a student density of at least 200 students per acre, and are located in a school district having at least 40% of its K-12 students in multitrack year-round programs, are exempt from the operational grant augmentation to the school's student capacity.
If your school district plans to file a new construction application with the Office of Public School Construction within the next calendar year, renewing a "substantial enrollment" requirement waiver or certification will be beneficial to the district in establishing maximum new construction eligibility. Our records show that your district met the "substantial enrollment" requirement or received a waiver to the requirement within the last year.
School Districts Meeting the "Substantial Enrollment" Requirement
To re-certify meeting the multitrack year-round "substantial enrollment" requirement, please submit Form 50-01 based on October 2003 CBEDS data and the "substantial enrollment" worksheet.
School Districts Requesting a Waiver of the "Substantial Enrollment" Requirement
To renew a waiver from the multitrack year-round "substantial enrollment" requirement, please submit Form 50-01 based on October 2006 CBEDS data and state the reason for the waiver based on State Allocation Board policy.
The Form 50-01 worksheet (Outside Source) is available via the Internet.
Please send all correspondence
to:
School Facilities Planning Division
California Department of Education
1430 N Street, Suite 1201
Sacramento, CA 95814
Attention: Shannon Farrell-Hart
If you have questions, please contact Fred Yeager at 916-327-7148 or Shannon Farrell-Hart at 916-323-3923.
Attachment: Multitrack Year-Round Education "Substantial Enrollment" Worksheet
cc: State Allocation Board
Education Code Section 17017.7(c). Project funding for new construction; priority for approval.
(c) "Substantial enrollment," for the purposes of this section, means enrollment of at least 30 percent of district pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 6, inclusive, or 40 percent of pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, in the high school attendance area for which the school district is applying for new facilities. The calculation set forth in this subdivision, as to a self-certifying district, shall be made by the district, in accordance with any standards governing that calculation that are adopted by the board. The calculation shall be certified by the district to the board and used by the board for the purposes of this section. The self-certifying district shall maintain documentation of the calculation as may be required by the board, and the calculation shall be subject to subsequent audit as the board may direct. If a self-certifying district is found by the board to have materially misrepresented its pupil enrollment pursuant to this subdivision, the board may impose either or both of the penalties set forth in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 17041.2, in accordance with that section. (Added by Stats. 1996, c. 277 (S.B. 1562), Section 2, operative Jan. 1, 1998)
Education Code Section 17017.6. Substantial enrollment; application to high school districts.
Notwithstanding Section 17017.7, the definition of "substantial enrollment" set forth in that section shall apply only to elementary and unified school districts. For a high school district, "substantial enrollment in multitrack year-round schools," for the purposes of Section 17017.7, means that at least 30 percent of the pupils enrolled in the high school district are enrolled in multitrack year-round schools, or that 40 percent of the pupils enrolled in public school in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, within the boundaries of the high school attendance area for which the school district is applying for new facilities are enrolled in multitrack year-round schools. In addition, a high school district shall be deemed to have a "substantial enrollment" in multitrack year-round schools for purposes of Section 17017.7 if, at the option of the district, the entire high school to be constructed is to operate on a multitrack year-round basis. (Added by Stats. 1996, c. 277 (S.B. 1562), Section 2, operative Jan. 1, 1998)
Substantial Enrollment waivers may be granted, pursuant to Board policy, when:
- A district's current K-6 enrollment shows 300 or fewer ADA;
- An insufficient number of 3/4-year projected students will exist in the district to load four classrooms at State loading standards at each grade level, K-6;
- A high school district's current enrollment is less than 1,200;
- Students attending school in remote, isolated attendance areas are not included in the "substantial enrollment" evaluation;
- An educational hardship would exist in the district by implementing MTYRE;
- A financial hardship would exist in the district by having a substantial enrollment in MTYRE programs along with financial recovery status under AB 1200.
Sliding Scale Substantial Enrollment Reduction in Eligibility
If an applicant school district is unable to meet the "substantial enrollment" threshold, but has students in multitrack year-round education, it qualifies for a reduced "substantial enrollment" augmentation to the school district's existing student capacity. This lesser increase in existing student capacity is available under the following conditions:
- The governing board of the school district must by resolution request the reduction in the unhoused projected enrollment of less than the 6% or 8% in lieu of reductions required by Board policy.
- The number of district or high school attendance area students in multitrack year-round education is subtracted from the threshold 30% or 40% "substantial enrollment" requirement for the school district or attendance area, and the difference is multiplied by 20%. This becomes the effective "substantial enrollment" in lieu reduction in the year following the school board's resolution.
- This reduction is temporary. However, in five years from the date of the first project approval following this partial reduction, if the threshold "substantial enrollment" percentage is not attained, the reduction shall become permanent.
- Each request for a partial reduction of eligibility under this policy shall be approved by the State Allocation Board.
