15-1466. State aid; eligibility; limits

A. Subject to legislative appropriation, the legislature shall determine and appropriate the amount of state aid each fiscal year to each district possessing the qualifications as prescribed in this chapter.

B. The state shall determine the amount of state aid, as prescribed in subsection D of this section, appropriated to each district for the fiscal year before the fiscal year for which the state aid is being calculated.

C. Each district qualified under this chapter shall have its state aid adjusted in an amount that reflects the growth or decrease in the full-time equivalent student count of the district calculated as follows:

1. Calculate the growth or decrease in the actual, audited full-time equivalent student count between the second and third most recent fiscal years before the fiscal year for which the state aid is being calculated for each district.

2. Calculate the average appropriation per full-time equivalent student for all districts by dividing the amount determined in subsection B of this section by the actual, audited full-time equivalent student count for all districts in the most recent fiscal year.

3. Multiply the amount calculated in paragraph 1 of this subsection by the average appropriation calculated in paragraph 2 of this subsection. This amount equals the adjustment required pursuant to this section.

D. The total amount appropriated to each district each fiscal year in accordance with this section shall serve as the amount of state aid to be adjusted in the next fiscal year. A district is eligible for growth funding pursuant to this section only for the portion of its most recent audited full-time student equivalent count that exceeds the audited full-time student equivalent count recorded for the district for the most recent fiscal year in which an adjustment was previously made pursuant to subsection C of this section.

E. To be eligible for state aid, a district shall:

1. Be equipped with suitable buildings, equipment and campus.

2. Have at least three hundred twenty full-time equivalent students attending in the district.

3. Have complied with all of the requirements of the district board, including budgets and curriculum.

F. The total amount of state monies that may be spent in any fiscal year by a district for operating state aid shall not exceed the amount appropriated or authorized by section 35-173 for that purpose. Notwithstanding section 15-1444, this section does not impose a duty on an officer, agent or employee of this state to discharge a responsibility or create any right in a person or group if the discharge or right would require an expenditure of state monies in excess of the expenditure authorized by legislative appropriation for that specific purpose, including any duties prescribed in an employment contract entered into pursuant to section 15-1444, subsection A, paragraph 6.

G. In addition to the formula to determine the state aid appropriations prescribed in this section, this state may pay additional amounts for state aid to a district based on requests included in the district's budget request.

H. This section does not entitle a community college operated by a qualified Indian tribe to state aid for community colleges pursuant to this chapter.