Volume 18, Issue 12
AUGUST, 2010
MCALLEN AFT NEWS
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
FEDERAL AID TO OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT
Congress passed the Education Jobs Fund, providing $10 bill in new funding for schools nationwide, on August 10, and President Obama signed the bill into law the same day. The Education Jobs Fund includes an estimated $830 million for Texas schools.
Under this program, the governor has until September 9, 2010, to request the funds. In order for Texas to receive its share of this federal aid, the governor is required to make some assurances that the state will maintain state education funding at the elementary, secondary, and post-secondary level. The most important required assurance is a statement that Texas will not reduce the percentage of state spending devoted to school formula funding.
Gov. Rick Perry has asserted that this requirement would force him to violate the state constitution, under which he cannot make spending commitments that bind future legislatures. But in reality the federal program requires no more than a statement of intent—not a binding commitment. Once that assurance of maintenance of state effort is given, the money flows, and there is no provision for any follow-up enforcement of this requirement.
Based on this analysis, Texas AFT/McAllen AFT have urged the governor to waste no time in offering the required assurances and to request the Texas share of the $10 billion without delay. See the Web letter posted on the Texas AFT Web site for our members to send to the governor, at www.texasaft.org. The Center for Public Policy Priorities also has exhorted Texas school boards and superintendents to contact the governor in support of claiming our state’s share of the funding.
If the governor fails to request the money by the statutory deadline of September 9, the federal legislation provides for an “alternative distribution method” to be used. A document containing “initial guidance for the state of Texas” from the U.S. Department of Education also refers to an “alternate entity” that could provide the necessary assurances for our state. However, these provisions have not been spelled out, and another part of the guidance document implies that the governor still is the one who must offer the necessary assurances.
How Districts Receive Money
The allocation of this new federal funding among Texas school districts must be based on local districts’ relative shares of the latest round of Title I funding.
What School Districts Can Use New Dollars For
The funds must be used only for compensation and benefits and other expenses, such as support services, necessary to retain existing employees, to recall or rehire former employees, and to hire new employees, in order to provide early childhood, elementary, or secondary educational and related services.
The federal guidance posted on August 13 states that the term “compensation and benefits and other expenses, such as support services” includes, among other things, salaries, performance bonuses, health insurance, retirement benefits, incentives for early retirement, pension fund contributions, tuition reimbursements, student loan repayment assistance, transportation subsidies, and reimbursement for child-care expenses.
On a conference call on August 12, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and his staff made it clear that school districts as a general rule may NOT spend the money on administrative expenses. Spending on district-level administration is prohibited.
Employees Whose Salaries Can be Paid with Education Jobs Funds.
The general rule is that districts can use the money to pay salaries of teachers and other employees who provide educational and related services at the campus level. Salaries and benefits for district-level administrative officials may not be paid from these federal funds.
When New Funds Can be Spent.
Secretary Duncan said last week that districts can use these federal funds for eligible expenses incurred from August 10 on.
The deadline for use of the new federal dollars is September 30, 2012. Under the law a school district theoretically could choose to use its entire allocation for the 2011-2012 school year rather than spend any of it for the 2010-2011 school year.
Distribution of Stimulus Job Bill Funds.
Below are a few of the districts getting Texas allotments:
Aldine $12,990,307
Alief $11,440,152
Amarillo $6,585,030
Austin $18,730,003
Bastrop $703,528
Brazosport $1,448,114
Corpus Christi $8,369,140
Cy-Fair $6,570,782
Dallas $52,997,812
Del Rio $2,594,939
Edinburg $9,243,138
El Paso $22,015,941
Ft. Bend $4,371,213
Galena Park $3,294,179
Goose Creek $2,784,110
Houston $71,867,183
La Joya $10,746,335
McAllen $6,582,359
Nacogdoches $1,402,866
North East $6,611,701
Northside $9,478,879
North Forest $5,089,738
Pflugerville $1,460,809
PSJA $9,159,396
Round Rock $1,513,710
San Antonio $21,007,235
Schertz $319,052
Socorro $6,199,205
South San $2,238,884
Spring Branch $5,908,502
Tyler $3,567,779
Victoria $2,323,755
Waco $5,540,229