1. (1) For the purposes of this section, the term “attendance center” shall mean a public school building or buildings or part of a school building that constitutes one unit for accountability purposes under the Missouri school improvement program.

(2) For any pupil residing in any unincorporated area located in any county of the first classification with more than one hundred one thousand but fewer than one hundred fifteen thousand inhabitants that also borders on any county with a charter form of government and with more than nine hundred fifty thousand inhabitants and any county with a charter form of government and with more than three hundred thousand but fewer than four hundred fifty thousand inhabitants, and for any pupil residing in any village with more than three hundred twenty but fewer than three hundred sixty inhabitants and located in any county of the third classification without a township form of government and with more than twenty-three thousand but fewer than twenty-six thousand inhabitants and with a village with more than two hundred but fewer than two hundred fifty inhabitants as the county seat, and for any pupil residing in an unincorporated area of a county of the third classification without a township form of government and with more than nine thousand but fewer than ten thousand inhabitants and with a city of the fourth classification with more than five hundred fifty but fewer than six hundred fifty inhabitants as the county seat, the commissioner of education or his or her designee shall, upon proper application by the parent or guardian of the pupil, assign the pupil and any sibling of the pupil to another school district if the pupil is eligible as described under subsection 2 of this section and the following conditions are met:

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(a) The actual driving distance from the pupil’s residence to the attendance center in the district of residence is fifteen miles or more by the shortest route available as determined by the commissioner or his or her designee;

(b) The attendance center to which the pupil would be assigned in the receiving district is at least five miles closer in actual driving distance by the shortest route available to the pupil’s residence than the current attendance center in the district of residence as determined by the commissioner or his or her designee; and

(c) The attendance of the pupil will not cause the classroom in the receiving district to exceed the maximum number of pupils per class as determined by the receiving district.

2. (1) For pupils applying to the commissioner of education under this section, the commissioner, or his or her designee, shall assign pupils in the order in which applications are received, provided the applications are properly completed and the conditions of subsection 1 of this section are met.

(2) Once granted, the hardship assignment shall continue until the pupil, and any sibling of the pupil who attends the same attendance center, completes his or her course of study in the receiving district or the parent or guardian withdraws the pupil. If a parent or guardian withdraws a pupil from a hardship assignment, the granting of a subsequent application is discretionary.

(3) A pupil shall be eligible to apply to the commissioner of education to be assigned to another district under this section if the pupil has been enrolled in and attending a public school in his or her district of residence during the school year prior to the application. Any pupil shall be eligible to apply to the commissioner of education to be assigned to another district under this section if the pupil has been enrolled in and attending a public school in a district other than his or her district of residence and paid nonresident tuition for such enrollment during the school year prior to the application, or, in the case where a pupil is applying under subdivision (2) of subsection 1 of this section, if the pupil has applied for enrollment in a public school in a district other than his or her district of residence but whose application was denied. Pupils who reside in the district who become eligible for kindergarten or first grade shall also be eligible to apply to the commissioner of education to be assigned to another district.

(4) A pupil who is not currently enrolled in a public school district shall become eligible to apply to the commissioner of education to be assigned to another district after the pupil has enrolled in and completed a full school year in a public school in his or her district of residence.

3. The board of education of the district in which the pupil resides shall pay the tuition of the pupil assigned. The tuition amount shall not exceed the pro rata cost of instruction. However, if the tuition of the receiving district is greater than the tuition of the pupil’s district of residence, the pupil’s parent or guardian shall pay the difference in tuition.

4. A receiving district shall not be required to alter its transportation route to accommodate pupils that are assigned to the receiving district under the provisions of this section.