1. A transportation equity program is established to provide prioritized additional funding for school districts with a transportation cost per pupil that exceeds the statewide adjusted transportation cost per pupil for the same budget year.
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Terms Used In Iowa Code 257.16C

  • Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
  • Budget adjustment: means an adjustment to the regular program district cost of a school district for school districts in which the regular program district cost for a year would be less than the regular program district cost for the previous year. See Iowa Code 257.2
  • Budget year: means the school year beginning during the calendar year in which a budget is certified. See Iowa Code 257.2
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute mean the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Miscellaneous income: means the receipts deposited to the general fund of the school district but not including any of the following:
     a. See Iowa Code 257.2
  • School: means an agency of the state or political subdivision of the state, individual, partnership, company, firm, society, trust, association, corporation, or any combination which meets any of the following criteria:
     a. See Iowa Code 261B.2
  • School district: means a school corporation organized under chapter 274. See Iowa Code 257.2
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the said district and territories. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • year: means twelve consecutive months. See Iowa Code 4.1
 2. a. For the budget year beginning July 1, 2018, and each succeeding budget year, the department of management shall annually determine a statewide adjusted transportation cost per pupil that is not lower than the statewide average transportation cost per pupil. The statewide adjusted transportation cost per pupil shall be annually determined, by taking into account amounts appropriated to the transportation equity fund under subsection 3, for the purpose of providing transportation equity aid for those school districts with the highest transportation cost per pupil differential.

 b. Each school district that satisfies the criteria of subsection 1 shall receive transportation equity aid in an amount equal to the school district’s actual enrollment for the school year, excluding the shared-time enrollment for the school year, multiplied by the school district’s transportation cost per pupil differential for the budget year.
 c. For purposes of this section:

 (1) “Statewide average transportation cost per pupil” means the total transportation cost for all school districts in the state used to calculate each school district’s transportation cost per pupil under paragraph “d” divided by the total enrollment for all school districts used to calculate each school district’s transportation cost per pupil under paragraph “d”.
 (2) “Transportation cost per pupil differential” means an amount equal to a school district’s transportation cost per pupil minus the statewide adjusted transportation cost per pupil for the same budget year.
 d. A school district’s transportation cost per pupil shall be determined by dividing the school district’s actual transportation cost for all children transported in all school buses for a school year pursuant to section 285.1, subsection 12, less the amount of transportation costs reimbursed under section 256.25A and the amount received for transporting nonpublic school pupils under section 285.1, by the district’s actual enrollment for the school year, excluding the shared-time enrollment for the school year as defined in section 257.6.
 3. a. A transportation equity fund is created as a separate and distinct fund in the state treasury under the control of the department of management. Moneys in the fund include revenues credited to the fund, appropriations made to the fund, and other moneys deposited in the fund. For each fiscal year beginning on or after July 1, 2018, there is appropriated all moneys in the fund to the department of management for purposes of making transportation equity aid payments under this section.

 b. If the balance of the fund exceeds the amount necessary to make all transportation equity aid payments under subsection 2, moneys remaining in the fund shall be used for transportation base funding payments under subsection 4.
 c. If the balance of the fund exceeds the amount necessary to make all transportation equity aid payments and all transportation base funding payments, moneys remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year, notwithstanding section 8.33, shall remain in the fund and shall be available for expenditure for the purposes of this section in subsequent fiscal years.
 d. (1) For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2019, there is appropriated from the general fund of the state to the department of management for deposit in the transportation equity fund the sum of nineteen million dollars, or so much thereof as is necessary, to be used for the purposes of this section.

 (2) For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2020, there is appropriated from the general fund of the state to the department of management for deposit in the transportation equity fund the sum of the following, or so much thereof as is necessary, to be used for the purposes of this section:

 (a) The amount appropriated to the transportation equity fund under this paragraph for the immediately preceding fiscal year.
 (b) The product of the amount determined under subparagraph division (a) multiplied by the categorical percent of growth under section 257.8, subsection 2, for the budget year beginning on the same date of the fiscal year for which the appropriation is made.
 (c) Seven million two hundred fifty-three thousand eighty-eight dollars.
 (3) For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2021, and the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2022, there is appropriated from the general fund of the state to the department of management for deposit in the transportation equity fund an amount necessary to make all transportation equity aid payments under subsection 2, to be used for the purposes of this section.
 (4) For each fiscal year beginning on or after July 1, 2023, there is appropriated from the general fund of the state to the department of management for deposit in the transportation equity fund the sum of the following, or so much thereof as is necessary, to be used for the purposes of this section:

 (a) The amount appropriated to the transportation equity fund under this paragraph for the immediately preceding fiscal year.
 (b) The product of the amount determined under subparagraph division (a) multiplied by the categorical percent of growth under section 257.8, subsection 2, for the budget year beginning on the same date of the fiscal year for which the appropriation is made.
 4. For budget years beginning on or after July 1, 2018, if funding is available as provided in subsection 3, paragraph “b”, each school district in the state shall receive a transportation base funding payment in an amount equal to the school district’s enrollment used under subsection 2, paragraph “d”, multiplied by the lesser of the statewide average transportation cost per pupil or the school district’s transportation cost per pupil for the budget year. If an amount appropriated for a budget year is insufficient to pay all transportation base funding payments, the department of management shall prorate such payment amounts.
 5. a. The sum of the transportation equity aid payment and the transportation base funding payment paid to a school district for a budget year shall not exceed the school district’s actual transportation cost used to calculate the school district’s transportation cost per pupil under subsection 2, paragraph “d”, for the budget year.

 b. Transportation equity aid payments and transportation base funding payments shall be paid at the same time and in the same manner as foundation aid is paid under section 257.16, and may be included in the monthly payment of state aid under section 257.16, subsection 2.
 6. Transportation equity aid payments and transportation base funding payments received under this section are miscellaneous income and shall be deposited in the general fund of the school district. However, the transportation equity aid amount and the transportation base funding amount shall not be included in district cost. Transportation equity aid under this section shall not affect the receipt or amount of a budget adjustment received under section 257.14 or transportation assistance aid under section 257.31, subsection 17.
 7. On or before December 1, 2020, and on or before December 1 every five years thereafter, the director of the department of education shall compile and review the data collected as a result of the transportation equity aid and transportation base funding payments provided under this section and shall prepare a report to the general assembly containing analysis of the aid and the payments’ efficacy and recommendations for changes.
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