House Bill 539

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 37-181-7, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO FUND AS MANY EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIP ACCOUNTS TO THE FULLEST EXTENT POSSIBLE; TO AMEND SECTION 37-181-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT TO ESTABLISH A PORTAL FOR THE ELECTRONIC TRANSFER OF INFORMATION BETWEEN THE DEPARTMENT, PARENTS AND INSTITUTIONS; TO REQUIRE SCHOOLS TO SUBMIT DOCUMENTATION OF PRE- AND POST-STUDENT ASSESSMENTS ON ESA RECIPIENTS; TO AMEND SECTION 37-181-11, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT TO ANNUALLY AUDIT ESA PROGRAM ACTIVITIES TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE WITH DEPARTMENT POLICIES AND STATE LAW; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 37-181-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-181-7. (1) (a) The ESA program created in this chapter shall be limited to five hundred (500) students in the school year 2015-2016, with new enrollment limited to five hundred (500) additional students each year thereafter. Subject to appropriation from the General Fund, each student's ESA shall be funded * * *at up to Six Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($6,500.00) for school year 2015-2016. For each subsequent year, this amount shall increase or decrease by the same proportion as the base student cost under Section 37-151-7(1)(b) is increased or decreased.

(b) The Department shall make all reasonable efforts to fund as many scholarships annually as possible. To this end, the department shall apply unused administrative funds or other funds not expended by scholarship recipients to increase the number of scholarships granted in a year.

(2) Subject to appropriation, eligible students shall be approved for participation in the ESA program as follows:

(a) Until participation in the ESA program reaches fifty percent (50%) of the annual enrollment limits in subsection (1) of this section, students shall be approved on a first-come, first-served basis, with applications being reviewed on a rolling basis;

(b) After participation reaches fifty percent (50%) of the annual enrollment limits in subsection (1) of this section, the department shall set annual application deadlines for the remaining number of available ESAs and begin to maintain a waiting list of eligible students. The waitlist will be maintained in the chronological order in which applications are received. The department shall award ESA program applications in chronological order according to the waitlist; and

(c) Participating students who remain eligible for the ESA program are automatically approved for participation for the following year and are not subject to the random selection process.

(3) No funds for an ESA may be expended from the Mississippi Adequate Education Program, nor shall any school district be required to provide funding for an ESA.

SECTION 2. Section 37-181-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-181-9. (1) (a) The department shall create a standard form that parents of students submit to establish their student's eligibility for an Education Scholarship Account. The department shall ensure that the application is readily available to interested families through various sources, including the department's website and the copy of procedural safeguards annually given to parents.

(b) To facilitate efficient processing of applications, reimbursements and other necessary communications, the department shall develop a portal for use by the department, parents and schools. The portal shall be operational by the beginning of the 2023-2024 school year.

(2) The department shall provide parents of participating students with a written explanation of the allowable uses of Education Scholarship Accounts, the responsibilities of parents and the duties of the department. This information shall also be made available on the department's website.

(3) The department shall annually notify all students with an IEP of the existence of the ESA program and shall ensure that lower-income families are made aware of their potential eligibility.

(4) The department may deduct an amount up to a limit of six percent (6%) from appropriations used to fund Education Scholarship Accounts to cover the costs of overseeing the funds and administering the ESA program.

(5) (a) The department shall make a determination of eligibility, and shall approve the application, within twenty-one (21) business days of receiving an application for participation in the ESA program, subject to the provisions of Section 37-181-3(b).

(b) The department shall provide for a procedure that children with a ruling of hearing impairment or children suspected of a hearing loss shall receive a comprehensive educational assessment which may include the areas of cognitive development, language/speech, audiological and academic achievement from the state-funded Mississippi Assistance Center for Hearing Loss. Children with a ruling of visual impairment or children suspected of a visual impairment shall receive a comprehensive low vision evaluation from the state-funded Low Vision Clinic.

(6) The home school district shall provide the parent of a participating student with a complete copy of the student's school records, while complying with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20 USCS Section 1232(g)). The record shall be provided no later than thirty (30) days after a parent signs an agreement to participate in the ESA program.

(7) The department shall adopt policies requiring that all participating schools submit the certification required by Section 37-181-15(i) and further require that participating schools submit all necessary documentation to establish that the ESA participants have met requirements for pre- and post-student assessments. Submission of the required certification shall be a precondition to authorizing ESA payments to parents in future years.

SECTION 3. Section 37-181-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-181-11. (1) (a) To ensure that funds are spent appropriately, the State Department of Education shall adopt rules and policies necessary for the administration of the ESA program, including the auditing of Education Scholarship Accounts, and shall conduct or contract for random audits throughout the year.

(b) The department shall annually request that its internal auditor conduct an audit of the ESA program to determine if funds have been properly disbursed, and the only eligible expenses have been reimbursed. The audit shall be based on a sample of, at a minimum, twenty-five (25) disbursements in a fiscal year. Additionally, the audit shall:

(i) Test for parental reimbursements being recorded as credits to the ESA;

(ii) Test to determine if student recertifications required by Section 37-181-5(8) have been received and appropriate action has been taken; and

(iii) Test to determine compliance with all policies adopted to comply with Section 37-181-5(9).

(2) (a) The department shall develop a system for payment of benefits, including, but not limited to, allowing educational service providers to invoice the department for qualified expenses consistent with Section 37-181-5(2), or allowing the parent or guardian who submitted the ESA program application to seek reimbursement for qualified expenses consistent with Section 37-181-5(2).

(b) The department may make payments to educational service providers or reimbursement to the parent or guardian who submitted the ESA program application via check or warrant or electronic funds transfer or any other means of payment deemed to be commercially viable or cost-effective.

(c) The department may also establish by rule that some payments to educational service providers will be made on a quarterly basis, rather than an annual basis, if the educational services will be rendered over an extended period of time.

(3) The department shall adopt a process for removing educational service providers that defraud parents and for referring cases of fraud to law enforcement.

(4) The department shall establish or contract for the establishment of an online anonymous fraud reporting service.

(5) The department shall establish or contract for the establishment of an anonymous telephone hotline for fraud reporting.

SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2023.