(5) Funds approved by the commissioner for purchase of portable, temporary classroom space for the year of allocation, beginning January 1, 1988.

Sec. 7. 20-A MRSA §15610, sub-§1, ¶G is enacted to read:

G.__Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or chapter 606-A, 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 to each school administrative unit.

Sec. 8. 20-A MRSA §15613, sub-§17, as enacted by PL 1997, c. 395, Pt. R, §1, is amended to read:

17. Unobligated balances. Unobligated balances from amounts appropriated for general purpose aid for local schools may not lapse but must be redistributed to school administrative units in the same fiscal year. The commissioner shall make the final determination of the total amount of unobligated funds and must redistribute 75% of those funds to program costs and 25% of those funds to out-of-district placement costs. To redistribute the 75% portion to the state share of program costs, the reduction percentage originally calculated for program costs pursuant to section 15603, subsection 26-A, paragraph F must be reduced by an amount sufficient to distribute the 75% share. The reductions in these percentages apply to all program cost areas except the transportation operating cost allocation.

SUMMARY

Current law requires that school administrative units will receive state subsidy for the state share of the foundation allocation, defined as the adjusted total of actual local operating costs and actual local program costs. However, the funds for these subsidizable costs are limited to the amount appropriated by the Legislature for the General Purpose Aid for Local Schools program. Appropriations for the past several years have addressed less than 25% of the amount needed to fully fund this program.