Running Head: NEVADA STATE ASSEMBLY 1

Nevada State Assembly Assignment

Olivia M. Norman

College of Southern Nevada

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A.B. 64

Assembly Bill No. 64 Committee on Education

This bill is in regards to students with disabilities receiving standard high school

diplomas.

Previously, students who did not meet the requirements for a standard diploma, but did

meet the requirements set forth in their Individualized Education Plan (IEP), would receive an

adjusted diploma.

This bill proposes another way for students with an IEP to gain a standard high school

diploma, rather than an adjusted diploma. If the student does not meet the requirements for a

standard diploma, but does meet the requirements in their IEP, AND their IEP teams determines

that they are proficient in the standards, they may still receive a standard diploma.
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[Rev. 5/24/2016 3:34:32 PM--2015]

CHAPTER 387 - Financial Support of School System

STATE MONEY

The State Controller must prepare quarterly reports on the State Permanent School Fund

while the State Treasurer is the legal custodian of funds. They must distribute the money only for

its intended purposes and not used for secular facilities. Separate accounting is done for special

programs including Special Education, Gifted and Talented Education, and Early Intervention.

Federal money must be accounted for separately.

FEDERAL MONEY

The State Treasurer is custodian of all federal money given to the state. The state must

comply with any stipulations on money received from Congress. The State board adopts

regulations for disbursement of federal funds. The Superintendent deposits the money with the

Treasurer who disburses it bases on requests from the Controller, who bases requests on orders

from the Superintendent. The state may make changes to programs in order to comply with

federal regulations for receiving funds, but will not pay out more than allocated amounts for

certain programs in order to comply.

PROGRAMS OF NUTRITION

Meal programs including lunch and breakfast also include meals for adults and is

overseen by the Director of the Department of Agriculture. The Director makes policies and

regulations regarding the nutrition programs. They may use money, if it is available, to study and

expand programs on nutrition. The Director may evaluate the nutritional quality of the programs.

There is one entire statute dedicated to stating the benefits of providing nutritious breakfasts. If

70% or more of a school qualify for free or reduced-price lunches, then the school will provide
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breakfast to all students. Schools may opt out of program meal programs under certain

conditions. Schools with the highest percentage of students granted free and reduced-price lunch

receive funds first. The Department of Agriculture monitors school breakfast programs and

compiles an annual report for the Governor and Director of Legislative Counsel Bureau.

APPORTIONMENTS AND ALLOWANCES FROM STATE DISTRIBUTIVE SCHOOL

ACCOUNT

Legislature will provide additional support for certain programs, including but not limited

to, Special Ed., GATE, and Early Intervention. Funds are appropriated based on enrollment.

Schools receive more money for students with disabilities and if the number of student with

disabilities exceed 13% of the total population, the school must receive an amount sufficient to

satisfy the cost. Any funds unused by special education programs is redistributed to gift

programs or hospitals and facilities that provide residential services. Schools must report

quarterly their average enrollment and must not purposefully effect declining enrollment.

Students in jail, and who have been excused from attendance due to completion of work or tests

are factors in the enrollment counts. Hospitals and facilities providing residential treatment may

request reimbursement. Several guidelines are in place to insure each school is counting for

enrollment in the same manner. Regulations are in place regarding student/teacher ratios. Charter

schools receive funds per student based on the basic support per student amount plus the amount

of local funds per student. Universities for profoundly gifted students receives funds based on the

same criteria as charter schools. There are several checks and balances in place regarding funds

provided to various non-traditional schools. There are also fund in case of emergency.
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ACCOUNTS AND FUNDS

Separate accounts are set up for programs for innovation and the prevention of

remediation. Funds from these accounts carry over to the new year, and do not go into the

general fund. There is a separate account for school improvement. There is a separate fund for

teachers school supplies.

SOURCES AND USE OF MONEY BY COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICTS

A portion of taxes from mineral is held in reserve for school funds. A separate account is

set up for County fund. County funds are distributed similar to state funds for special education

and gifted programs. Lodging taxes go into a supplemental school fund account. Taxes on

minerals are used for the following year. There are regulations on the allocation of county funds

such as maintenance of school buildings, rent of school houses, and transportation, etc There

are required annual expenditures for library and technology. County treasurers and auditors must

perform certain duties pay fines.

BUDGETS; FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY; SHORT-TERM FINANCING;

EXPENDITURES

Budgets must be submitted annually by the superintendent including, but not limited to,

employee salaries, insurance, cost of raises and extra programs. The department regulates the

formulation of budgets, investigates claims against school funds, and inspects and audits the

record books. If an auditor rejects a payment, they must explain why. The board must publish a

list of expenditures.

FINANCING OF CONSTRUCTION OF SCHOOLS AND OTHER PROJECTS

There must be a fund for building new schools in to keep up with the growth in

population. The money in this fund may be used for the districts debt. The amount in the fund is
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based on property tax. The Committee on Local Finance must annually submit a ballot question

to increase property taxes and they may be made available to the general public. A separate tax

may be levied to replace funds for building schools. Under certain conditions, taxes may be

imposed on new construction. A Committee consisting of various members of the community

shall be set up to make recommendation regarding over-crowding such as increased taxes. The

board of trustees may apply for bonds up to $40,000,000 per district.

REVIEW OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS BASED UPON FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

PRINCIPLES

An oversight committee of various members of the community must be set up to assist in

the process if a district is selected for review. The school must provide support if they are

selected for review. The school district must hold a public meeting following the finalization of

the review.

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

This section refers to the use of school buses for commercial advertising.
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For my home address in area code 89052, the following are the legislators:

State Senators: Catherine Cortez Masto (D)

Dean Heller (R)

State Assembly: Michael Roberson (R) - Senate District 20

Keith Pickard (R) - Assembly District 22

Jacky Rosen (D) - Congressional District 3

Kevin J. Page - Board of Regents District 3

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February 6, 2017

Olivia M. Norman
737 Sandy Hook Terrace
Henderson, Nevada 89052

Catherine Cortez Masto

B40A Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Ms. Masto,

As a parent of school-aged children, the wife of an elementary teacher, and a future educator, I
am extremely concerned about the prospect of school vouchers.

While vouchers are intended to allow students in low preforming schools an opportunity to
attend better schools, that is simply not what happens. Instead, an overwhelming majority of
those families using vouchers end up being from areas with the top performing public schools.
This only serves to increase the divide in populations. Additionally, over 50% of the private
schools in the Las Vegas area are secular-based schools. Providing public funds for students to
attend religion-based schools completely goes against the separation of church and state.
Vouchers are merely a way of getting around Constitutional laws against funding religious
teachings.

I implore you to vote against any attempts to increase the number of school vouchers entering the
system.

Sincerely,

Olivia M. Norman
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February 6, 2017

Olivia M. Norman
737 Sandy Hook Terrace
Henderson, Nevada 89052

Dean Heller
B40A Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Mr. Heller,

As a parent of school-aged children, the wife of an elementary teacher, and a future educator, I
am extremely concerned about the prospect of school vouchers.

While vouchers are intended to allow students in low preforming schools an opportunity to
attend better schools, that is simply not what happens. Instead, an overwhelming majority of
those families using vouchers end up being from areas with the top performing public schools.
This only serves to increase the divide in populations. Additionally, over 50% of the private
schools in the Las Vegas area are secular-based schools. Providing public funds for students to
attend religion-based schools completely goes against the separation of church and state.
Vouchers are merely a way of getting around Constitutional laws against funding religious
teachings.

I implore you to vote against any attempts to increase the number of school vouchers entering the
system.

Sincerely,

Olivia M. Norman