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IMFRP Frequently Asked Questions

Information about Instructional Materials Funding Realignment Program (IMFRP).
Funding

  1. How much funding will my district or county office get in 2006-07?

  2. Are the Kindergarten through grade eight and the grades nine through twelve funding separate?

  3. When will local education agencies receive funding allocations?

  4. Will charter schools receive IMFRP funding?

  5. What happens to Instructional Materials Funds (IMF) the district hasn't spent yet?

  6. What happened to Kindergarten through grade four Classroom Library Materials Funds?

  7. Will districts or county offices of education still get school library funds?

  8. How will the district or county office of education certify compliance with IMFRP?

Instructional Materials

  1. What Kindergarten through grade eight materials can we buy with IMFRP funds?

  2. What high school (grades nine through twelve) materials can we buy with IMFRP funds?

  3. What are the "Other Approved Purposes" for IMFRP?

  4. What does the 24 month rule in AB1781 mean?

  5. What does it mean that "each pupil is provided with" instructional materials?

  6. What are "instructional materials?"

  7. What are the grades nine through twelve Standards Maps?

  8. What is required to purchase classroom library materials for Kindergarten through grade four?

  9. What is the Section 60119 Hearing and Resolution?

Funding

Question 1:
How much funding will my district or county office get in 2006-07?

Answer:
The state budget for 2006-07 was passed and included $403 million in total funding for the IMFRP, or approximately $65 per pupil Kindergarten through grade twelve.

Question 2:
Are the Kindergarten through grade eight and the grades nine through twelve funding separate?

Answer:
The funding is considered one resource under Standardized Account Code Structure (SACS) Resource Code 7156. Districts, and county offices of education with students in both Kindergarten through grade eight and grades nine through twelve may use the funds for any of the grade levels. Funds do not need to be spent only on those grade levels that generated the funds in the first place. Expenditures for materials Kindergarten through grade eight should be separated from expenditures for grades nine through twelve materials for auditing purposes because they have different requirements for adoption and purchase.
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Question 3:
When will local education agencies receive funding allocations?

Answer:
According to Education Code Section 60421 (b) funding is to be allocated in September of each year.
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Question 4:
Will charter schools receive IMFRP funding?

Answer:
Charter schools will receive their IMFRP funds in their categorical block grant.
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Question 5:
What happens to Instructional Materials Fund (IMF) the district hasn't spent yet?

Answer:
IMF carried over from previous years must be spent following the same expenditure rules that applied to the funds when they were allocated. There is no expenditure deadline for either the Kindergarten through grade eight IMF or the grades nine through twelve IMF.

Question 6:
What happened to Kindergarten through grade four Classroom Library Materials Funds?

Answer:
AB 1781 repealed the Classroom Library Materials Act (Education Code sections 18200-18201). As a result, there is no new funding for Kindergarten through grade four classroom library materials, however, it is one of the options available under Other Approved Purposes. See the section on Other Approved Purposes for details.
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Question 7:
Will districts or county offices of education still get School Library Funds?

Answer:
Starting in 2005-06 the School Library funds became a part of the School and Library Improvement categorical block grant.

For specific information see Classroom and School Library Funding.
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Question 8:
How will the district or county office of education certify compliance with IMFRP?

Answer:
Education Code Section 60422 (b) requires local education agencies to certify that they have provided each pupil with standards-aligned textbooks or basic instructional materials and that they have done so within the time limit stated. This certification can be accomplished by local governing board action taken either at the time that the action has been completed, or when the governing board conducts its hearing pursuant to Education Code Section 60119.

For suggested language see IMFRP Certification (DOC; 25KB; 2pp.) and 60119 Resolution (DOC; 27KB; 3pp.).
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Instructional Materials

Question 1:
What Kindergarten through grade eight materials can we buy with IMFRP funds?

Answer:
Funds for Kindergarten through grade eight must be spent in this order:

  1. State adopted standards-aligned instructional materials
    Districts and county offices of education must use the IMFRP funds to ensure that each pupil is provided with a standards-aligned textbook or basic instructional materials, as adopted by the State Board of Education in the four core curriculum areas of: reading/language arts/english language development, mathematics, science, and history-social science.

    See Price Lists of Kindergarten through grade eight Instructional Materials for details on state-adopted materials.
  2. State adopted instructional materials in other subjects
    After the local governing board certifies that it has provided each pupil with a standards-aligned textbook or basic instructional materials in the four core academic subjects (history-social science, mathematics, reading/language arts and science), then the district may use IMFRP funds to purchase instructional materials from any other current state adopted list, including health, foreign language, and visual and performing arts. See IMFRP Certification (DOC; 25KB; 2pp.) for more information.

    See Price Lists of Kindergarten through grade eight Instructional Materials for details on the state-adopted materials.
  3. Other approved purchases
    After the local governing board has certified that each pupil has been provided with standards-aligned instructional materials and has met the requirements of Education Code Section 60119 by holding a public hearing and adopting a resolution on the sufficiency of instructional materials (see question on Section 60119 Hearing and Resolution), then the district or county office may use any remaining funds from their IMFRP allocation for other approved purposes (see question on Other Approved Purposes).

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Question 2:
What high school (grades nine through twelve) materials can we buy with IMFRP funds?

Answer:
Funds must be spent in this order:

  1. Locally adopted standards-aligned instructional materials
    Districts or county offices of education must ensure that each pupil is provided with a standards-aligned textbook or basic instructional materials...as adopted by the local governing board pursuant to sections 60400 and 60411, for grades nine through twelve, inclusive.

    Adoption of standards-aligned instructional materials must be made by adoption of a resolution by the local governing board that the materials are aligned with the content standards adopted by the State Board of Education. Districts or county offices of education are encouraged to use grade nine through twelve standards maps to insure that instructional materials align with state content standards.
  2. Locally adopted instructional materials in other subjects
    After the local governing board certifies that it has provided each pupil with a standards-aligned textbook or basic instructional materials in the four core academic subjects (history-social science, mathematics, reading/language arts, and science), then the district may use IMFRP funds to purchase locally adopted instructional materials in any of the other subject areas for which there are curriculum frameworks, including health, foreign language, physical education, and visual and performing arts. See IMFRP Certification (DOC; 25KB; 2pp.) for more information.
  3. Other Approved purchases
    After the local governing board has certified that each pupil has been provided with standards-aligned instructional materials and has met the requirements of Education Code Section 60119 by holding a public hearing and adopting a resolution (see 60119 Resolution- Suggested Language for more information) on the sufficiency of instructional materials (see question on Section 60119 Hearing and Resolution), then the district may use any remaining funds from their current year allocation for other approved purposes (see section on Other Approved Purposes).

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Question 3:
What are the "Other Approved Purposes" for IMFRP?

Answer:
Once a district or county office of education has 1) provided all students with standards-aligned textbooks or basic instructional materials in the four core academic areas and 2) met the requirements of Section 60119 (see question on Section 60119 Hearing and Resolution) then any remaining funds in the annual IMFRP allocation may be used for the other stated purposes as listed in Section 60242 (a). These include the following:

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Question 4:
What does the 24 month rule in AB 1781 mean?

Answer:
AB1781 stated that "pupils shall be provided with standards-aligned textbooks or basic instructional materials by the beginning of the first school term that commences no later than 24 months after those materials were adopted by the State Board of Education." (Education Code Section 60422 [a])

Because AB1781 took effect January 1, 2003, and because there was no language to make this provision retroactive, the 24 month rule applies to all future primary adoptions in the four core academic areas. A primary adoption is the first adoption after the adoption of evaluation criteria by the State Board of Education.

The next state Kindergarten through grade eight primary adoptions are as follows:

  • 2005 - History-Social Science
  • 2006 - Science
  • 2007 - Mathematics
  • 2008 - Reading/Language Arts/English Language Development

For Kindergarten through grade eight , each pupil is to be provided with state-adopted instructional materials aligned to state standards and, for grades nine through twelve, each pupil is to be provided with locally adopted instructional materials aligned to state standards in these four core subject areas by the start of the school term that commences no later than 24 months from the adoption date, either the state adoption date for Kindergarten through grade eight materials or the local governing board adoption date for grades nine through twelve materials.

For example, the state adopted new history-social science materials in November 2005, the district would be required to provide each K-8 pupil with materials from this adoption by the start of the fall 2007 school term to meet the deadline.

If a local governing board adopted history-social science materials for grades nine through twelve in December 2005, the district would be required to provide each student in these classes in grades nine through twelve with the materials by the start of the fall 2007 school term to meet the deadline.

The requirement in the law for districts is not to "adopt" materials or to "purchase" materials, but to "provide" each pupil with materials.
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Question 5:
What does it mean that "each pupil is provided with" instructional materials?

Answer:
There is no specific definition of the phrase "provided with." The local governing board will determine how it will provide these textbooks or basic instructional materials to students. However, Education Code Section 60119 now defines sufficient instructional materials to "mean that each pupil, including English learners, has a textbook or instructional materials, or both, to use in class and to take home."
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Question 6:
What are "instructional materials?"

Answer:
The definition of instructional materials is in Education Code Section 60010 (h). It states "instructional materials means all materials that are designed for use by pupils and their teachers as a learning resource and help pupils acquire facts, skills, or opinions or develop cognitive processes. Instructional materials may be printed or nonprinted, and may include textbooks, technology-based materials, other educational materials, and tests".
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Question 7:
What are the nine through twelve Standards Maps?

Answer:
At one time the Education Code required publishers to submit grade level content standards maps to local districts so that the districts could determine the extent to which basic instructional materials in history-social science, mathematics, reading/language arts and science in nine through twelve are aligned to the content standards adopted by the State Board of Education. Districts are encouraged to use the standards maps when determining if materials are aligned to state content standards. See Standards Maps.   
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Question 8:
What is required to purchase classroom library materials for Kindergarten through grade four?

Answer:
If the district or county office of education has met the basic requirements of IMFRP (provided standards-aligned materials within the 24 month timeline and met the requirements of Section 60119) and wishes to use remaining funds to purchase classroom library materials, the district or county office of education must develop a districtwide classroom library plan for kindergarten to grade four and have the plan certified by the governing board. The plan must include a means of preventing loss, damage, or destruction of the materials.

Districts and county offices of education are encouraged to consult with school library media teachers and primary grade teachers and to consider selections included in the list of Recommended Literature: Kindergarten Through Grade Twelve if a school district or county office of education already has a plan meeting these criteria, no new plan is required. See details in Education Code Section 60242 (d) (1).
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Question 9:
What is the Section 60119 Hearing and Resolution?

Answer:
Education Code Section 60119 requires that local governing boards hold an annual public hearing and adopt a resolution (See 60119 Resolution- Suggested Language (DOC; 27KB; 3pp. ]) stating whether each pupil in the district has sufficient textbooks or instructional materials in reading/language arts, mathematics, science, and history-social science aligned to content standards and consistent with the content and cycles of the curriculum framework adopted by the State Board of Education.

A new requirement is that the governing board must also make a written determination as to whether each pupil enrolled in health and foreign language classes has sufficient textbooks or instructional materials.

The governing board must also determine the availability of science laboratory equipment for high school science laboratory classes.

There must be at least ten days notice of the public hearing posted in at least three public places within the district. The notice must state the time, place, and purpose of the hearing. The hearing must not be held during or immediately after school hours.

Governing boards must encourage participation by parents, teachers, members of the community, and bargaining unit leaders in the hearing.

If the local governing board finds that there are insufficient materials they must do the following:

  • Provide information to classroom teachers and to the public that sets forth the reasons why each pupil does not have sufficient textbooks or instructional materials and give the percentage of students in each school and subject that lack sufficient instructional materials.
  • Take action to insure that each pupil has sufficient materials within two months of the start of the school year.
This public hearing and resolution are required annually in those fiscal years where the base revenue limit for each school district in the state will increase by at least one percent.
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Questions: Susan Martimo | smartimo@cde.ca.gov | 916-319-0446 
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