Tennessee § 49-3-356 - State and local contributions to BEPs funds — Equalization — Determination of fiscal capacity.

§ 49-3-356. State and local contributions to BEPs funds — Equalization — Determination of fiscal capacity.

The state shall provide seventy-five percent (75%) of the funds generated by the Tennessee BEP formula in the classroom components and fifty percent (50%) in the nonclassroom components as defined by the state board. Every local government shall appropriate funds sufficient to fund the local share of the BEP. No LEA shall commence the fall term until its share of the BEP has been included in the budget approved by the local legislative body. From the local portion of such revenues, there shall be a distribution of funds for equalization purposes pursuant to a formula adopted by the state board, as approved by the commissioners of education and finance and administration. It is the intent of the general assembly to provide funding on a fair and equitable basis by recognizing the differences in the ability of local jurisdictions to raise local revenues. The fiscal capacity of each LEA for purposes of allocating BEP funding during a school year shall be determined by May 1 preceding the school year. Once the fiscal capacity of an LEA is determined for a school year, neither the department nor the Tennessee advisory commission on intergovernmental relations shall change or revise the fiscal capacity of the LEA for that school year. Acts 1992, ch. 535, § 3; 2004, ch. 670, § 1; 2007, ch. 369, § 2; 2015, ch. 255, § 1. Compiler's Notes. Acts 2004, ch. 670, § 9 provided that in reviewing the BEP for fiscal year 2005-2006, the BEP review committee is requested to give special consideration to costs of enhanced services to address the needs of at-risk children, the cost of educating English language learners, including teachers, translators and related professions, and the development and implementation of a system-level fiscal capacity model. Law Reviews. Symposium – Memphis in the Law: A Memphis Dilemma: A Half-Century of Public Education Reform in Memphis and Shelby County From Desegregation to Consolidation (Daniel Kiel), 41 U. Mem. L. Rev. 787 (2011). Attorney General Opinions. Local education agency funding of raises for local school employees, OAG 99-130, 1999 Tenn. AG LEXIS 123 (6/30/99). Because the City of Memphis is legally obliged to provide funding for K-12 education, it cannot reduce or eliminate its current level of school funding, OAG 05-021, 2005 Tenn. AG LEXIS 21 (3/10/05). Changes made to the formula adopted by the state board of education for equalization purposes, pursuant to T.C.A. § 49-3-356 , must be submitted to the House and Senate education committees for review and recommendation and approval by resolution of those bodies, OAG 05-186, 2005 Tenn. AG LEXIS 188 (12/22/05). County Budgeting Law of 1957 and funding of schools. OAG 11-68, 2011 Tenn. AG LEXIS 70 (9/15/11). Changes to the data sources in the Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations fiscal-capacity model must be adopted by the State Board of Education and approved by the Commissioners of Education and Finance and Administration. Legislative approval is not required for such changes, nor is approval of the Basic Education Program {BEP) Review Committee. OAG 20-01, 2020 Tenn. AG LEXIS 1 (1/10/2020).