Code Section Group

ARTICLE 7. Conditions Disqualifying School Districts from Apportionments [41420 - 41455]

41420.

(a) No school district, other than one newly formed, shall, except as otherwise provided in this article, receive any apportionment based upon average daily attendance from the State School Fund unless it has maintained the regular day schools of the district for at least 175 days during the next preceding fiscal year.

(b) If any school within a school district fails to maintain its school for the required 175 days, the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall withhold from the district’s apportionment based upon average daily attendance a product of 0.01143 times the district’s apportionment for each additional day the school would have had to maintain operations to meet the 175 day requirement.

For the purpose of this subdivision, except as otherwise provided, the State Board of Education shall establish the standards and criteria for defining a day qualifying for the 175-day minimum requirement.

(Amended by Stats. 1981, Ch. 569, Sec. 1.)

41421.

A school district is a newly formed district up to the close of the fiscal year in which its formation became effective for all purposes.

(Enacted by Stats. 1976, Ch. 1010.)

41422.

(a) A school district, county office of education, or charter school that is prevented from maintaining its schools during a fiscal year for at least 180 days for a school district or county office of education or 175 days for a charter school, or is required to operate sessions of shorter length than otherwise prescribed by law because of fire, flood, earthquake, or epidemic, or because of any order of any military officer of the United States or of the state to meet an emergency created by war, or of any civil officer of the United States, of the state, or of any county, city and county, or city authorized to issue that order to meet an emergency created by war, or because of other extraordinary conditions, or because of inability to secure or hold a teacher, or because of the illness of the teacher, which fact shall be shown to the satisfaction of the Superintendent by the affidavits of the members of the governing board of the school district, the governing board of the county office of education, or the governing board or body of the charter school and of the county superintendent of schools, shall receive the same apportionment from the State School Fund as it would have received had it not been so prevented from maintaining school for at least 180 full-length days for a school district or county office of education or 175 full-length days for a charter school.

(b) This section shall also apply to school districts, county offices of education, or charter schools that, in the absence of one or more of the conditions prescribed by this section, would have qualified for funds pursuant to Sections 46200 to 46208, inclusive, or Section 47612.5, as applicable.

(c) (1) Notwithstanding the inability to secure or hold a teacher, or because of the illness of the teacher pursuant to subdivision (a), from September 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022, inclusive, with the exception of a school closure for a schoolsite or class that only serves pupils who are individuals with exceptional needs, as defined in Section 56026, whose individualized education program developed pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 56340) of Chapter 4 of Part 30 of Division 4 does not specifically provide for participation in independent study or pupils who are enrolled in community day schools pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 48660) of Chapter 4 of Part 27 of Division 4, a school district, county office of education, or charter school shall not receive the same apportionment from the State School Fund pursuant to this section as it would have received had it not been so prevented from maintaining school for at least 180 full-length days for a school district or county office of education or 175 full-length days for a charter school if the school closure was due to impacts from COVID-19.

(2) (A) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a school district, county office of education, or charter school may still receive credit for instructional days and minutes that were scheduled for in-person instruction, as demonstrated by the governing board or body approved calendar in place before the event, on days in which the school district, county office of education, or charter school was prevented from maintaining school due to the conditions indicated in paragraph (1) provided that instruction was offered to all eligible pupils through independent study pursuant to Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 51745) of Chapter 5 of Part 28 of Division 4 and implementing regulations adopted thereunder.

(B) The superintendent of a school district, the county superintendent of schools, or the administrator of a charter school shall certify to the Superintendent to offering all eligible pupils instruction through independent study pursuant subparagraph (A).

(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), from September 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022, inclusive, a school district, county office of education, or charter school may receive the same apportionment from the State School Fund pursuant to this section for school closures related to impacts from COVID-19 due to COVID-19 related staffing shortages if the following conditions are established to the satisfaction of the Superintendent by affidavits of the members of the governing board or body of the school district, county office of education, or charter school and the county superintendent of schools:

(A) The school district, county office of education, or charter school is unable to provide in-person instruction to pupils due to staffing shortages as a result of staff quarantine due to exposure to, or infection with, COVID-19 pursuant to local or state public health guidance.

(B) For certificated staff shortages, the school district, county office of education, or charter school has exhausted all options for obtaining staff coverage, including using all certificated staff and substitute teacher options, and has consulted with their county office of education and the Superintendent in determining that staffing needs cannot be met through any option.

(C) For classified staff shortages, the school district, county office of education, or charter school has exhausted all options for obtaining staff coverage, including using all staff options, and has consulted with their county office of education and the Superintendent in determining that staffing needs cannot be met through any option.

(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 252, Sec. 8. (AB 167) Effective September 23, 2021.)

41423.

No money shall be apportioned to a district for the excess cost of educating pupils in a 24-hour elementary school of the district unless such school has met the requirements of the Superintendent of Public Instruction based upon educational standards and standards established by state agencies authorized by law to inspect or supervise child-caring institutions.

(Enacted by Stats. 1976, Ch. 1010.)

41450.

The Legislature finds that each year one or more school districts or county offices of education experience severe financial difficulty. In some cases these school districts or county offices of education request emergency apportionments from the state under the provisions of Article 2 (commencing with Section 41320). In order to reduce the need for these apportionments, it is the intent of the Legislature that the Superintendent of Public Instruction be authorized to provide assistance and guidance to school districts and county offices of education that are experiencing severe financial difficulty. That assistance and guidance shall be limited to the fiscal concerns addressed by the standards and criteria adopted pursuant to Section 33127.

(Added by Stats. 1988, Ch. 1462, Sec. 1.15.)

41455.

After receiving the advice of the Controller, the Superintendent of Public Instruction is authorized pursuant to Section 41450 to contract with consultants possessing financial and administrative expertise, including county offices of education, to examine the financial problems of county offices of education and school districts that are identified as being in severe financial difficulty. The examination shall result in a written report to the Superintendent of Public Instruction regarding financial problems identified and recommendations on ways to alleviate them, which report shall be presented at a public meeting of the governing board of each of the school districts and county offices of education.

(Added by Stats. 1988, Ch. 1462, Sec. 1.16.)