Connecticut § 10-227 - Returns of receipts, expenditures and statistics to Commissioner of Education. Verification mandated. Penalty. Publication.

§ 10-227. Returns of receipts, expenditures and statistics to Commissioner of Education. Verification mandated. Penalty. Publication.

Sec. 10-227. Returns of receipts, expenditures and statistics to Commissioner of Education. Verification mandated. Penalty. Publication. (a) Each board of education shall cause the superintendent to make returns not later than September first of each year to the Commissioner of Education of the receipts, expenditures and statistics, as prescribed by the commissioner, provided each such board may submit revisions to the returns in such form and with such documentation as required by the commissioner not later than January thirty-first of each year following the September submission. Such reports or returns required shall be filed in accordance with the instructions furnished by the commissioner, shall be certified not later than January thirty-first of each year by the independent public accountant selected pursuant to section 7-392 for the purpose of auditing municipal accounts, and shall be subject to Department of Education verification. If the returns and statistics and revisions called for by said commissioner are not filed on or before the days specified in this section or if the returns are not certified as required by the commissioner on or before January thirty-first, each local and regional board of education required by law to make separate returns, whose returns and statistics or revisions are delayed until after those days, shall forfeit of the total sum which is paid for such board of education from the State Treasurer an amount to be determined by the State Board of Education, which amount shall be not less than one thousand dollars nor more than ten thousand dollars. The amount so forfeited shall be withheld from a subsequent grant payment as determined by the commissioner. Notwithstanding the penalty provision of this section, the Commissioner of Education may waive said forfeiture for good cause.

(b) Not later than March 15, 2025, and annually thereafter, the Department of Education shall publish on its Internet web site the data contained in the reports and returns filed pursuant to subsection (a) of this section by education program type, expense function, expense object and funding source, including, but not limited to, federal, combined state and local and combined private and other sources for the school and district level. The department shall develop and publish a guide that contains definitions for each category of expenditure and funding source.

(c) Not later than March 15, 2025, and annually thereafter, the Department of Education shall develop and publish the data contained in the reports and returns filed pursuant to subsection (a) of this section in a format that allows financial comparisons between school districts and schools, including student enrollment and demographic statistics as of October first of the school year in which such reports and returns were filed.

(1949 Rev., S. 1485; P.A. 77-167, S. 2, 3; 77-614, S. 302, 610; P.A. 78-218, S. 155; P.A. 79-128, S. 7, 36; P.A. 83-363, S. 4, 5; P.A. 84-221, S. 1, 2; P.A. 89-237, S. 3, 11; P.A. 91-303, S. 16, 22; 91-401, S. 13, 20; P.A. 98-252, S. 16, 80; P.A. 03-76, S. 18; P.A. 23-167, S. 1; P.A. 24-93, S. 16.)

History: P.A. 77-167 changed return deadline from August to September first in each year; P.A. 77-614 substituted commissioner of education for secretary of the state board of education, effective January 1, 1979; P.A. 78-218 deleted references to returns made by “supervisor of schools”, substituted “each local and regional school district” for “each town and each school district”; P.A. 79-128 substituted “board of education” for “school district”, changed basis of penalty from “sum per child” to “total sum ... paid from the state treasury” and replaced 1%, 2%, 3%, 5% and 10% penalty assessments with $100, $200, $300, $500 and $1,000 penalty assessments; P.A. 83-363 provided cutoff for submission of revisions, required certification of reports or returns no later than December thirty-first by independent public accountant selected for purpose of auditing municipal accounts and required reports or returns to be subject to state department verification, including audit; P.A. 84-221 deleted weekly penalty provisions and substituted flat rate of $1,000 to $10,000, to be determined by the state board of education, added that the penalty would be withheld from a subsequent grant payment and that the state board may waive the forfeiture if failure to file data in a timely manner was due to extenuating circumstances; P.A. 89-237 allowed waivers of the forfeiture for failure to submit unaudited data in a timely manner; P.A. 91-303 removed requirement that reports be made under oath or affirmation and made technical changes; P.A. 91-401 repealed provision making reports and returns subject to state department of education audit, effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 98-252 changed the basis for a waiver from circumstances beyond the control of the board to good cause and made technical changes, effective July 1, 1998; P.A. 03-76 made a technical change, effective June 3, 2003; P.A. 23-167 designated existing provisions as Subsec. (a) and amended same by replacing “made” and “sent” with “filed”, added Subsec. (b) re department to publish data contained in reports and returns on Internet web site and develop and publish guide of definitions for each category of expenditure and funding source, and added Subsec. (c) re department to develop and publish data contained in such reports and returns in format that allows financial comparisons between school districts and schools, effective July 1, 2023; P.A. 24-93 amended Subsec. (a) by replacing December with January, amended Subsec. (b) by replacing February 15, 2024, with March 15, 2025, and amended (c) by replacing February 15, 2025, with March 15, 2025, effective July 1, 2024.

Cited. 187 C. 187; 195 C. 24.