§6336. Education finance incentive program

(a) Grants

The Secretary is authorized to make grants to States from the sums appropriated pursuant to subsection (e) of this section to carry out the purposes of this part.

(b) Distribution based upon fiscal effort and equity

(1) In general

Funds appropriated pursuant to subsection (e) of this section shall be allotted to each State based upon the number of children aged 5 to 17, inclusive, of such State multiplied by the product of-

(A) such State's effort factor described in paragraph (2); multiplied by

(B) 1.30 minus such State's equity factor described in paragraph (3),

except that for each fiscal year no State shall receive less than one-quarter of 1 percent of the total amount appropriated pursuant to subsection (e) of this section for such fiscal year.

(2) Effort factor

(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the effort factor for a State shall be determined in accordance with the succeeding sentence, except that such factor shall not be less than .95 nor greater than 1.05. The effort factor determined under this sentence shall be a fraction the numerator of which is the product of the three-year average per-pupil expenditure in the State multiplied by the three-year average per capita income in the United States and the denominator of which is the product of the three-year average per capita income in such State multiplied by the three-year average per-pupil expenditure in the United States.

(B) The effort factor for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico shall be equal to the lowest effort factor calculated under subparagraph (A) for any State.

(3) Equity factor

(A)(i) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall determine the equity factor under this section for each State in accordance with clause (ii).

(ii)(I) For each State, the Secretary shall compute a weighted coefficient of variation for the per-pupil expenditures of local educational agencies in accordance with subclauses (II), (III), (IV), and (V).

(II) In computing coefficients of variation, the Secretary shall weigh the variation between per-pupil expenditures in each local educational agency and the average per-pupil expenditures in the State according to the number of pupils in the local educational agency.

(III) In determining the number of pupils under this paragraph in each local educational agency and each State, the Secretary shall multiply the number of children from low-income families by 1.4 under this paragraph.

(IV) In computing coefficients of variation, the Secretary shall include only those local educational agencies with an enrollment of more than 200 students.

(V) The Secretary shall compute separate coefficients of variation for elementary, secondary, and unified local educational agencies and shall combine such coefficients into a single weighted average coefficient for the State by multiplying each coefficient by the total enrollments of the local educational agencies in each group, adding such products, and dividing such sum by the total enrollments of the local educational agencies in the State.

(B) The equity factor for a State that meets the disparity standard described in section 222.63 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (as such section was in effect on the day preceding October 20, 1994) or a State with only one local educational agency shall be not greater than .10.

(C) The Secretary may revise each State's equity factor as necessary based on the advice of independent education finance scholars to reflect other need-based costs of local educational agencies in addition to low-income student enrollment, such as differing geographic costs, costs associated with students with disabilities, children with limited-English proficiency or other meaningful educational needs, which deserve additional support. In addition and also with the advice of independent education finance scholars, the Secretary may revise each State's equity factor to incorporate other valid and accepted methods to achieve adequacy of educational opportunity that may not be reflected in a coefficient of variation method.

(c) Use of funds

All funds awarded to each State under this section shall be allocated to local educational agencies and schools on a basis consistent with the distribution of other funds to such agencies and schools under sections 6333, 6334, and 6335 of this title to carry out activities under this part.

(d) Maintenance of effort

(1) In general

Except as provided in paragraph (2), a State is entitled to receive its full allotment of funds under this part for any fiscal year if the Secretary finds that either the combined fiscal effort per student or the aggregate expenditures within the State with respect to the provision of free public education for the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year for which the determination is made was not less than 90 percent of such combined fiscal effort or aggregate expenditures for the second fiscal year preceding the fiscal year for which the determination is made.

(2) Reduction of funds

The Secretary shall reduce the amount of the of ¹ funds awarded to any State under this section in any fiscal year in the exact proportion to which the State fails to meet the requirements of paragraph (1) by falling below 90 percent of both the fiscal effort per student and aggregate expenditures (using the measure most favorable to the State), and no such lesser amount shall be used for computing the effort required under paragraph (1) for subsequent years.

(3) Waivers

The Secretary may waive, for one fiscal year only, the requirements of this subsection if the Secretary determines that such a waiver would be equitable due to exceptional or uncontrollable circumstances such as a natural disaster or a precipitous and unforeseen decline in the financial resources of the State.

(e) Authorization of appropriations

For the purpose of making grants under this section, there are authorized to be appropriated $200,000,000 for fiscal year 1996 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the three succeeding fiscal years.

(Pub. L. 89–10, title I, §1125A, as added Pub. L. 103–382, title I, §101, Oct. 20, 1994, 108 Stat. 3575 .)

Codification

October 20, 1994, referred to in subsec. (b)(3)(B), was in the original "the date of enactment of this Act", which was translated as meaning the date of enactment of Pub. L. 103–382, which enacted this section, to reflect the probable intent of Congress.

¹ So in original. The word "of" probably should not appear.