Charter School Superintendents, County and District Superintendents, and County and District Chief Business Officers:

DETERMINATION OF FUNDING REQUESTS FOR
FISCAL YEAR 2023–24

The purpose of this letter is to provide information regarding funding determination requests for charter schools providing nonclassroom-based (NCB) instruction in excess of 20 percent of its total average daily attendance (ADA).

General Information

California Education Code (EC) Section 47612.5(e)(1) and California Code of Regulations, Title 5 (5 CCR) Section 11963 specify the requirements for classroom-based instruction and school site conditions. For the purposes of funding on the basis of ADA, a charter school is considered operating as an NCB charter school if its total ADA is less than 80 percent classroom based. A charter school’s status as NCB or classroom-based is not dependent upon it having or not having an approved funding determination. Rather, a charter school’s status as NCB or classroom-based is determined by its reported ADA at its Second Principal (P-2) Apportionment certification.

To be eligible for funding for its NCB ADA, a charter school must submit a funding determination request to the California Department of Education (CDE) and receive approval of its funding determination request from the California State Board of Education (SBE). The request is made by completing the NCB Funding Determination Form; the form and instructions are located at NCB Determination of Funding. Please note that the form is now entirely web-based as opposed to the prior version, which was a Portable Document Format (PDF) file. Requests submitted using older versions of the form will not be accepted.

EC sections 47612.5 and 47634.2, and 5 CCR established the criteria for the review and evaluation of determination of funding. Pursuant to 5 CCR Section 11963.4(a), a charter school may qualify for a funding determination of 70 percent, 85 percent, or 100 percent, or may be denied a funding determination. Pursuant to 5 CCR Section 11963.4(e), a charter school that does not meet the criteria for its requested level of funding may provide mitigating circumstances for consideration.

Determination of funding requests are reviewed by the CDE and presented to the Advisory Commission on Charter Schools (ACCS). Both the CDE's and ACCS's recommendations are presented to the SBE for final action.

Filing Deadlines

Charter Schools with a Funding Determination in the Prior Year

To continue receiving funding for their NCB ADA, existing NCB charter schools whose funding determination expires at the end of fiscal year (FY) 2023–24 must submit a funding determination request by February 1, 2024, pursuant to 5 CCR Section 11963.6(c).

Audited data from FY 2022–23 should be used to complete the NCB Funding Determination Form.

For charter schools with an active funding determination or a funding determination that was active in the prior year, determination of funding requests submitted after the applicable due date will not be accepted. These charter schools are required to obtain a waiver approved by the SBE so that an untimely determination of funding request may be heard. Information and timelines for filing a waiver are posted at Waivers.

Charter Schools Without a Funding Determination in the Prior Year

Existing charter schools that did not have a funding determination in the prior year but that are providing a combination of both classroom-based and NCB instruction for FYs 2023–24 or 2024–25 require a funding determination approved by the SBE to receive Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) funding for NCB ADA if their classroom-based ADA falls below the 80 percent minimum in accordance with EC Section 47612.5(e)(1). A charter school may experience fiscal impacts to its LCFF funding if a funding determination request is not submitted timely.

Funding determination requests will be agendized according to the table below. The following deadlines provide CDE staff adequate time to review all funding determination forms received as well as allow the requests to be heard first at the Advisory Commission on Charter Schools (ACCS) meeting occurring the month before each SBE meeting.

Existing charter schools that do not currently have an active funding determination should use current year budget data to complete the form.

Local Control Funding Formula Impact

There may be a significant fiscal impact to an NCB charter school’s LCFF funding if a determination of funding request is not submitted timely.

• A charter school requesting funding for its NCB ADA for FY 2023–24 must have a funding determination request approved by the SBE by its January 2024 meeting. Otherwise, the CDE will not disburse LCFF funds to the charter school for any of its NCB ADA beginning with the First Principal (P-1) Apportionment for FY 2023–24. To receive disbursement of LCFF funds for NCB ADA for the P-2 Apportionment for FY 2023–24, the funding determination must be approved by the SBE by its May 2024 meeting.
• A charter school requesting funding for its NCB ADA for FY 2024–25 must have a funding determination request approved by the SBE by its January 2025 meeting. Otherwise, the CDE will not disburse LCFF funds to the charter school for any of its NCB ADA beginning with P-1 Apportionment for FY 2024–25. To receive disbursement of LCFF funds for NCB ADA for the P-2 Apportionment for FY 2024–25, the funding determination must be approved by the SBE by its May 2025 meeting.

In each scenario, funding may be adjusted after a funding determination is approved. However, any funding withheld at the P-2 Apportionment will not be adjusted until the following FY, at the P-1 Apportionment. The charter school’s following FY Advance Apportionment funding will also be impacted. Other ADA-driven funding for charter schools, such as lottery funding, may be impacted as well.

Additional information about the Principal Apportionment processes and timelines can be found at Fiscal Calendars.

Questions regarding the implications to LCFF funding should be directed to the School Fiscal Services Division by email at PASE@cde.ca.gov.

Contact Information

Please direct all questions regarding the funding determination submission process or the completion of the NCB Funding Determination Form to the Charter Schools Division by phone at 916-322-6029 or by email at FundingDeterminations@cde.ca.gov.

Please direct all questions pertaining to LCFF funding to the School Fiscal Services Division by email at PASE@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

/s/

Susan Park, Director
Charter Schools Division

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