Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §15610, sub-§1, ¶G is enacted to read:

G.__Notwithstanding any other law, if reductions are made in the state share of the foundation allocation by calculating a reduction for each unit, the calculation must be performed by applying a standard mill rate to each school administrative unit rather than by applying a fixed percentage.

Sec. 2. 20-A MRSA §15652, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 368, Pt. Z, §1 and affected by §2, is repealed.

Sec. 3. 20-A MRSA §15652, sub-§4, as amended by PL 1997, c. 643, Pt. D, §3, is repealed.

Sec. 4. 20-A MRSA §15652, sub-§7, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 368, Pt. Z, §1 and affected by §2, is repealed.

Sec. 5. 20-A MRSA §15654, sub-§1, ¶A, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 368, Pt. Z, §1 and affected by §2, is amended to read:

A. The school administrative unit's weighted relative property fiscal capacity, as defined in section 15657; and

Sec. 6. 20-A MRSA §15657, as amended by PL 1997, c. 643, Pt. D, §5, is repealed and the following enacted in its place:

§15657.__Relative property fiscal capacity

For each school administrative unit, the commissioner shall annually determine the unit's relative property fiscal capacity by dividing the local per pupil property fiscal capacity by the statewide per pupil property fiscal capacity.

SUMMARY

This bill removes income and cost-of-living factors from the distribution of funding for education under the School Finance Act of 1995, leaving relative property fiscal capacity as the only factor. It also requires that reductions in state funds be made by applying a mill rate to each school administrative unit rather than a percentage.