79-1033. State aid; payments; reports; use; requirements; failure to submit reports; effect; early payments.

(1) Except as otherwise provided in the Tax Equity and Educational Opportunities Support Act, state aid payable pursuant to the act for each school fiscal year shall be based upon data found in applicable reports for the most recently available complete data year. The annual financial reports and the annual statistical summary of all school districts shall be submitted to the Commissioner of Education pursuant to the dates prescribed in section 79-528. If a school district fails to timely submit its reports, the commissioner, after notice to the district and an opportunity to be heard, shall direct that any state aid granted pursuant to the act be withheld until such time as the reports are received by the department. In addition, the commissioner shall direct the county treasurer to withhold all school money belonging to the school district until such time as the commissioner notifies the county treasurer of receipt of such reports. The county treasurer shall withhold such money. For school districts that are members of learning communities, a determination of school money belonging to the district shall be based on the proportionate share of state aid and property tax receipts allocated to the school district by the learning community coordinating council for school fiscal years prior to school fiscal year 2017-18, and the county treasurer shall withhold any such school money in the possession of the county treasurer from the school district. If the school district does not comply with this section prior to the end of the state's biennium following the biennium which included the school fiscal year for which state aid was calculated, the state aid funds shall revert to the General Fund. The amount of any reverted funds shall be included in data provided to the Governor in accordance with section 79-1031.

(2) A district which receives, or has received in the most recently available complete data year or in either of the two school fiscal years preceding the most recently available complete data year, federal funds in excess of twenty-five percent of its general fund budget of expenditures may apply for early payment of state aid paid pursuant to the act when such federal funds are not received in a timely manner. Such application may be made at any time by a district suffering such financial hardship and may be for any amount up to fifty percent of the remaining amount to which the district is entitled during the current school fiscal year. The state board may grant the entire amount applied for or any portion of such amount if the state board finds that a financial hardship exists in the district. The state board shall notify the Director of Administrative Services of the amount of funds to be paid in lump sum and the reduced amount of the monthly payments. The Director of Administrative Services shall, at the time of the next state aid payment made pursuant to section 79-1022, draw a warrant for the lump-sum amount from appropriated funds and forward such warrant to the district. For purposes of this subsection, financial hardship means a situation in which income to a district is exceeded by liabilities to such a degree that if early payment is not received it will be necessary for the district to discontinue vital services or functions.

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