RD32 - Annual Report on the Status of Required Local Effort in Support of the Standards of Quality


Executive Summary:
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 22.1-97, Code of Virginia, the Department of Education collected data from school divisions on the actual local funding effort in support of the Standards of Quality for fiscal year 2005, through the 2004-2005 Annual School Report Financial Section (ASRFIN). Information was also collected from school divisions on budgeted required local effort in support of the Standards of Quality for fiscal year 2006. This report provides the results of calculations made to ensure that each school division has expended or appropriated (depending upon the year under review) sufficient local funds to support its required local effort. The objective of required local effort is to ensure that each school division has sufficient local operational expenditures to support its local share of the cost of the Standards of Quality. Fiscal year 2005 calculations are based on actual local operational expenditures and fiscal year 2006 calculations are based on budgeted local operational expenditures.

For fiscal year 2005, all school divisions except Franklin County submitted the required information to review their required local effort. As of the date of this report, Franklin County has not submitted its fiscal year 2005 Annual School Report Financial Section and is not included in this report for fiscal year 2005. All reporting school divisions except Russell County met required local effort. Of the divisions that met required local effort, all exceeded required local effort, with local support in excess of the required amount ranging from 0.6 percent to 211.2 percent. The average local support in excess of the required level for fiscal year 2005 was 68.9 percent. The Department of Education is currently working with Russell County to meet the provisions of the appropriation act and Section 22.1-97, Code of Virginia, for a governing body that fails to meet required local effort.

For fiscal year 2006, all school divisions except Craig County have budgeted local operational funds sufficient to meet required local effort. The range of budgeted local support in excess of required local effort is 0.6 percent to 234.8 percent. The average budgeted local support in excess of the required level for fiscal year 2006 is 75.7 percent. Craig County, whose budgeted local operational funds do not meet budgeted required local effort for fiscal year2006, has requested additional fiscal year 2006 appropriations from its local governing body in order to meet required local effort for fiscal year 2006. The Department of Education will continue to monitor this situation and work with Craig County.

School divisions whose local appropriations for fiscal year 2006 are only slightly in excess of the amount required to maintain local effort for the Standards of Quality are requested to review their average daily membership on a monthly basis during the fiscal year, to ensure sufficient appropriations are available based on current enrollment levels.