August 30, 2006, Introduced by Reps. Mortimer, Emmons, Moore, Farhat and Nitz and referred to the Committee on Higher Education and Career Preparation.
A bill to amend 1979 PA 94, entitled
"The state school aid act of 1979,"
by amending section 107 (MCL 388.1707), as amended by 2005 PA 155.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 107. (1) From the appropriation in section 11, there is
allocated an amount not to exceed $21,000,000.00 for 2005-2006 for
adult education programs authorized under this section.
(2) To be eligible to be a participant funded under this
section, a person shall be enrolled in an adult basic education
program, an adult English as a second language program, a general
educational development (G.E.D.) test preparation program, a job or
employment related program, or a high school completion program,
that meets the requirements of this section, and shall meet either
of the following, as applicable:
(a) If the individual has obtained a high school diploma or a
general educational development (G.E.D.) certificate, the
individual meets 1 of the following:
(i) Is less than 20 years of age on September 1 of the school
year and is enrolled in the state technical institute and
rehabilitation center.
(ii) Is less than 20 years of age on September 1 of the school
year, is not attending an institution of higher education, and is
enrolled in a job or employment-related program through a referral
by an employer.
(iii) Is enrolled in an English as a second language program.
(iv) Is enrolled in a high school completion program.
(b) If the individual has not obtained a high school diploma
or G.E.D. certificate, the individual meets 1 of the following:
(i) Is at least 20 years of age on September 1 of the school
year.
(ii) Is at least 16 years of age on September 1 of the school
year, has been permanently expelled from school under section
1311(2) or 1311a of the revised school code, MCL 380.1311 and
380.1311a, and has no appropriate alternative education program
available through his or her district of residence.
(3) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (4), the amount
allocated under subsection (1) shall be distributed as follows:
(a) For districts and consortia that received payments for
2003-2004 under this section, the amount allocated to each for
2005-2006 shall be based on the number of participants served by
the district or consortium for 2005-2006, using the amount
allocated per full-time equated participant under subsection (5),
up to a maximum total allocation under this section in an amount
equal to the amount the district or consortium received for 2003-
2004 under this section before any reallocations made for 2003-2004
under subsection (4).
(b) A district or consortium that received funding in 2003-
2004 under this section may operate independently of a consortium
or join or form a consortium for 2005-2006. In addition, a district
that had a declaration of financial emergency in place under the
local government fiscal responsibility act, 1990 PA 72, MCL
141.1201 to 141.1291, and for which that declaration was revoked
during 2005 may operate a program under this section independently
of a consortium or may join or form a consortium to operate a
program under this section. The allocation for 2005-2006 to the
district or the newly formed consortium under this subsection shall
be
determined by the department of labor and economic growth and
shall be based on the proportion of the amounts that are
attributable to the district or consortium that received funding in
2003-2004 or, for a district for which a declaration of financial
emergency was revoked during 2005, based on the amount the district
received under this section using a 3-year average of the 3 most
recent fiscal years the district received funding under this
section. A district or consortium described in this subdivision
shall
notify the department of labor and economic growth of
its
intention with regard to 2005-2006 by October 1, 2005.
(4) A district that operated an adult education program in
2004-2005 and does not intend to operate a program in 2005-2006
shall
notify the department of labor and economic growth by
October 1, 2005 of its intention. The funds intended to be
allocated under this section to a district that does not operate a
program in 2005-2006 and the unspent funds originally allocated
under this section to a district or consortium that subsequently
operates a program at less than the level of funding allocated
under subsection (3) shall instead be proportionately reallocated
to the other districts described in subsection (3)(a) that are
operating an adult education program in 2005-2006 under this
section.
(5) The amount allocated under this section per full-time
equated participant is $2,850.00 for a 450-hour program. The amount
shall be proportionately reduced for a program offering less than
450 hours of instruction.
(6) An adult basic education program or an adult English as a
second language program operated on a year-round or school year
basis may be funded under this section, subject to all of the
following:
(a) The program enrolls adults who are determined by an
appropriate assessment to be below ninth grade level in reading or
mathematics, or both, or to lack basic English proficiency.
(b) The program tests individuals for eligibility under
subdivision (a) before enrollment and tests participants to
determine progress after every 90 hours of attendance, using
assessment
instruments approved by the department.
of labor and
economic
growth.
(c) A participant in an adult basic education program is
eligible for reimbursement until 1 of the following occurs:
(i) The participant's reading and mathematics proficiency are
assessed at or above the ninth grade level.
(ii) The participant fails to show progress on 2 successive
assessments after having completed at least 450 hours of
instruction.
(d) A funding recipient enrolling a participant in an English
as a second language program is eligible for funding according to
subsection (10) until the participant meets 1 of the following:
(i) The participant is assessed as having attained basic
English proficiency.
(ii) The participant fails to show progress on 2 successive
assessments after having completed at least 450 hours of
instruction.
The department of labor and economic growth shall
provide information to a funding recipient regarding appropriate
assessment instruments for this program.
(7) A general educational development (G.E.D.) test
preparation program operated on a year-round or school year basis
may be funded under this section, subject to all of the following:
(a) The program enrolls adults who do not have a high school
diploma.
(b) The program shall administer a G.E.D. pre-test approved by
the
department of labor and economic growth before
enrolling an
individual to determine the individual's potential for success on
the G.E.D. test, and shall administer other tests after every 90
hours of attendance to determine a participant's readiness to take
the G.E.D. test.
(c) A funding recipient shall receive funding according to
subsection (10) for a participant, and a participant may be
enrolled in the program until 1 of the following occurs:
(i) The participant passes the G.E.D. test.
(ii) The participant fails to show progress on 2 successive
tests used to determine readiness to take the G.E.D. test after
having completed at least 450 hours of instruction.
(8) A high school completion program operated on a year-round
or school year basis may be funded under this section, subject to
all of the following:
(a) The program enrolls adults who do not have a high school
diploma.
(b) A funding recipient shall receive funding according to
subsection (10) for a participant in a course offered under this
subsection until 1 of the following occurs:
(i) The participant passes the course and earns a high school
diploma.
(ii) The participant fails to earn credit in 2 successive
semesters or terms in which the participant is enrolled after
having completed at least 900 hours of instruction.
(9) A job or employment-related adult education program
operated on a year-round or school year basis may be funded under
this section, subject to all of the following:
(a) The program enrolls adults referred by their employer who
are less than 20 years of age, have a high school diploma, are
determined to be in need of remedial mathematics or communication
arts skills and are not attending an institution of higher
education.
(b) An individual may be enrolled in this program and the
grant recipient shall receive funding according to subsection (10)
until 1 of the following occurs:
(i) The individual achieves the requisite skills as determined
by appropriate assessment instruments administered at least after
every 90 hours of attendance.
(ii) The individual fails to show progress on 2 successive
assessments after having completed at least 450 hours of
instruction.
The department of labor and economic growth shall
provide information to a funding recipient regarding appropriate
assessment instruments for this program.
(10) A funding recipient shall receive payments under this
section in accordance with the following:
(a) Ninety percent for enrollment of eligible participants.
(b) Ten percent for completion of the adult basic education
objectives by achieving an increase of at least 1 grade level of
proficiency in reading or mathematics; for achieving basic English
proficiency; for passage of the G.E.D. test; for passage of a
course required for a participant to attain a high school diploma;
or for completion of the course and demonstrated proficiency in the
academic skills to be learned in the course, as applicable.
(11) As used in this section, "participant" means the sum of
the number of full-time equated individuals enrolled in and
attending a department-approved adult education program under this
section, using quarterly participant count days on the schedule
described in section 6(7)(b).
(12) A person who is not eligible to be a participant funded
under this section may receive adult education services upon the
payment of tuition. In addition, a person who is not eligible to be
served in a program under this section due to the program
limitations specified in subsection (6), (7), (8), or (9) may
continue to receive adult education services in that program upon
the payment of tuition. The tuition level shall be determined by
the local or intermediate district conducting the program.
(13) An individual who is an inmate in a state correctional
facility shall not be counted as a participant under this section.
(14) A district shall not commingle money received under this
section or from another source for adult education purposes with
any other funds of the district. A district receiving adult
education funds shall establish a separate ledger account for those
funds. This subsection does not prohibit a district from using
general funds of the district to support an adult education or
community education program.
(15) A district or intermediate district receiving funds under
this section may establish a sliding scale of tuition rates based
upon a participant's family income. A district or intermediate
district may charge a participant tuition to receive adult
education services under this section from that sliding scale of
tuition rates on a uniform basis. The amount of tuition charged per
participant shall not exceed the actual operating cost per
participant minus any funds received under this section per
participant. A district or intermediate district may not charge a
participant tuition under this section if the participant's income
is at or below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines published by
the United States department of health and human services.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act is intended to
transfer back to the department of education certain powers,
duties, and functions that were transferred to the former
department of career development by Executive Reorganization Order
No. 1999-7, MCL 388.995.