Measure to eliminate school district carryover limits heads to Senate

Legislation to provide financial assistance to school districts around the state passed out of the Senate Appropriations Committee Wednesday. Senate Bill 80, by Sen. Gary Stanislawski, would remove the limit on school district carryover funds helping provide schools with more funding.

“Currently, schools are draining their general funds in order to avoid being penalized by the state and having their State Aid reduced. By eliminating the carryover limits, schools could act responsibly and save their money for future budgetary needs,” said Stanislawski, R-Tulsa.

Under current law, a school district’s State Aid is reduced each year by the amount of carryover funds in the district’s general fund if the district exceeds certain standards for two consecutive years.

“During hard economic times like the ones we’ve been facing, schools need all the tools they can get to help make ends meet and be able to pay their bills and avoid laying teachers off,” said Stanislawski. “SB 80 is one of the tools that will help schools deal with budgetary issues by allowing them to hold on to money - creating a safety net for future expenses.”

SB 80 now moves before the full Senate.