Texas Education Code 48.274 – Foundation School Fund Transfers to Certain Charter Schools
(a) On the request of an open-enrollment charter school, the commissioner shall compare the student enrollment of the open-enrollment charter school for the current school year to the student enrollment of the school during the preceding school year. If the number of students enrolled at the open-enrollment charter school for the current school year has increased by 10 percent or more from the number of students enrolled during the preceding school year, the open-enrollment charter school may request that payments from the foundation school fund to the school for the following school year and each subsequent school year, subject to Subsection (b), be made according to the schedule provided under Subsection (c).
(b) An open-enrollment charter school that qualifies to receive funding as provided by this section is entitled to receive funding in that manner for three school years. On the expiration of that period, the commissioner shall determine the eligibility of the open-enrollment charter school to continue receiving payments from the foundation school fund under this section for an additional three school years. Subsequently, the open-enrollment charter school must reestablish eligibility in the manner provided by this subsection every three school years.
Terms Used In Texas Education Code 48.274
- Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
- 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.
- Year: means 12 consecutive months. See Texas Government Code 311.005
(c) Payments from the foundation school fund to an open-enrollment charter school under this section shall be made as follows:
(1) 22 percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of September of a fiscal year;
(2) 18 percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of October;
(3) 9.5 percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of November;
(4) four percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of December;
(5) four percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of January;
(6) four percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of February;
(7) four percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of March;
(8) 7.5 percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of April;
(9) five percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of May;
(10) seven percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of June;
(11) seven percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of July; and
(12) eight percent of the yearly entitlement of the school shall be paid in an installment to be made on or before the 25th day of August.
(d) The amount of any installment required by this section may be modified to provide an open-enrollment charter school with the proper amount to which the school may be entitled by law and to correct errors in the allocation or distribution of funds.
(e) Previously unpaid additional funds from prior fiscal years owed to an open-enrollment charter school shall be paid to the school together with the September payment of the current fiscal year entitlement.