H259 - 2023 Appropriations Act. (SL 2023-134)

Overview: Section 7.82 of S.L. 2023-134 requires the North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority (SEAA) to provide to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) the following information no later than October 15 of each year:

• Nonpublic schools in which Opportunity Scholarship grant recipients are enrolled, including the number of scholarship grant students at each nonpublic school.
• For each scholarship grant recipient, award amounts and sufficient personally identifiable information to track the recipient's continued enrollment in a nonpublic school. This information is confidential and is not a public record.

DPI must report no later than April 1 of each year to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee on the cumulative difference in the current school year between the Opportunity Scholarship grant award amount for each prior public school attendee enrolled in a nonpublic school and the average State per pupil allocation for daily membership for a student in a public school unit. A "prior public school attendee" means any scholarship grant recipient who was in membership in a public school unit for the majority of the first or second month of the school year immediately prior to enrollment in a nonpublic school, beginning with students enrolled in a public school unit in the 2023-2024 school year or subsequent school years.

This section extends certain dates by which the SEAA is required to report.

Additionally, the section states that it is the intent of the General Assembly to reinvest in the public schools any savings realized by the State each year, beginning in the 2025-2026 school year, because of the transfer of a student from a public school unit to a nonpublic school where the student accepts an Opportunity Scholarship grant award that is less than 100% of the State per pupil allocation for average daily membership for a student in a public school unit.

This section became effective July 1, 2023.