CONTACT PERSON(S):
NAME:
Linda Champion
PHONE:
(850) 488-5142
September 12, 2002
SUNCOM:
278-5142
CFO:
03
-
15
MEMORANDUM
TO:
District School Superintendents
FROM:
Wayne V. Pierson
SUBJECT:
Spending Flexibility for 2002-03
Senate Bill 20-E, Section 5, as enacted by Special Session E of the 2002 Legislature,
grants flexibility to each school district for the 2002-03 fiscal year to amend the
district's operating budget by transferring funds from specific categorical programs.
The school board is required to find and declare in a resolution adopted at a regular
meeting that the funds received for any of the following programs are urgently
needed to maintain board-specified academic classroom instruction.
Under this
resolution, the school board may consider and approve an amendment to the school
district's operating budget transferring the identified amount of funds.
The
categorical programs for which spending flexibility was granted are:
•
Student Transportation
•
Inservice Educational Personnel Training
•
Safe Schools
•
Public School Technology
•
Supplemental Academic Instruction
CFO 03-15
September 12, 2002
Page 2
Although Senate Bill 20-E granted spending flexibility for Teacher Recruitment and Retention, the
program was not funded in 2002-03.
However, because this program was granted flexibility
authority in both 2001-02 and 2002-03, any 2001-02 carryforward funds would have authority in
the current fiscal year.
This also applies to 2001-02 carryforward funds from each of the
categorical programs listed above.
Please be aware that the Florida Teacher Lead program was not included in Senate Bill 20-E;
therefore, carryforward funds from 2001-02 for this program do not have spending flexibility in
2002-03.
In addition to the requirement for a resolution, district school boards are required to report the
amount of funds transferred from each of the categorical programs in the 2002-03 annual financial
report to the Department of Education. Instructions for submitting this information will be provided
at a later time by the Office of Funding and Financial Reporting.
In order that we may respond to legislative inquiries regarding districts’ utilization of spending
flexibility, please provide a copy of the adopted flexibility resolution for 2002-03 and the related
budget amendment to the Office of Funding and Financial Reporting as soon as possible following
the school board’s action. The documents may be faxed to SC 292-6742 or (850) 922-6742 or
mailed to:
Department of Education
824 Turlington Building
325 West Gaines Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400
WVP/LC/bb
cc: District Finance Officers