2011-12 Amendments to Textbook, Software and Instructional Computer Hardware Aids Statutes
Sections 701, 711, 751 and 753 of NYS Education Law were amended for 2011-12 to provide flexibility in the use of instructional materials aids. The areas of instructional materials aids are textbooks, library materials, computer software and instructional computer hardware. The new provisions first apply to 2011-12 expenses for 2012-13 aids.
Under the new provisions, if a school district spends more than its maximum allocation in any one of the areas, the excess expense over the maximum allocation can be designated as expense for aid in one or more of the other categories, even if the district did not actually make purchases in the other categories:
Textbook expense in excess of the maximum Textbook Aid allocation may be designated as software or hardware expense (but not library materials expense) for the calculation of one or both of those aids, provided that the maximum allocation in the designated area exceeds the actual expense in the area;
Software expense in excess of the maximum Software Aid allocation may be designated as textbook or hardware expense (but not library materials expense) for the calculation of one or more of those aids, provided that the maximum allocation in the designated area exceeds the actual expense in the area;
Hardware expense in excess of the maximum Hardware Aid allocation may be designated as software or textbook expense (but not library materials expense) for the calculation of one or more of those aids, provided that the maximum allocation in the designated area exceeds the actual expense in the area;
-
Library Materials expense in excess of the maximum Library Materials Aid allocation may be designated as textbook, software or hardware expense for the calculation of one or more of those aids, provided that the maximum allocation in the designated area exceeds the actual expense in the area;
Please note that:
- Beginning with the 2011-12 claim year, a new SAMS schedule will display the real ST-3 expenses in each area, but allow districts to designate/claim different expense amounts for aid calculation purposes;
- Total instructional materials aids across all categories for districts that spend at or above the maximum allocation in all areas will not increase by re-designating reported (actual) ST-3 expenses;
- Districts’ total aid across all four categories may not exceed the
total actually spent across all four categories or the total maximum
allocation across all four categories.
EXAMPLE
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| Aid Area | District Reported Expense Eligible for Instructional Materials (ST-3) | Max. Allocations (Per Pupil Allocation X Enrollment) | District Designated Expense for Instructional Materials Aids Calculations | Aid Under Old Laws (<of ST-3 Exp.or Max) | Aid Under New Laws (<of Claimed Exp or Max) |
| Textbook | 150,000 | 200,000 | 190,000 | 150,000 | 190,000 |
| Software | 100,000 | 70,000 | 70,000 | 70,000 | 70,000 |
| Library Materials | 39,200 | 29,200 | 29,200 | 29,200 | 29,200 |
| Hardware | 0 | 72,300 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 289,200 | 371,500 | 289,200 | 249,200 | 289,200 |
| Aid: | 249,200 | 289,200 |
Column 1. There will be no change in how districts report their actual expenditures on the ST-3 for each category. (*Reported expense for hardware repair and staff development eligible for aid will continue to be limited to 20% of the maximum hardware aid allocation.)
Column 2. The maximum allocation for each area continues to be the appropriate enrollment for the aid area multiplied by $58.25, $14.98 or $6.25 for Textbook, Software and Library Aids, respectively. The maximum allocation for Hardware Aid equals enrollment multiplied by $24.20 multiplied by the RWADA aid ratio.
Column 3. New SAMS data entry items will be available for districts to designate their reported eligible expenses for instructional materials. In this example, the district spent $30,000 more on software than its maximum allocation in that area and $10,000 more on library materials than its maximum library materials allocation – a total of $40,000 excess. However, the district spent $50,000 less than its maximum textbook allocation. In order to receive aid on its total expenditure; i.e., in order not to “lose” the remaining $50,000 of available textbook allocation, this district would designate/claim the $40,000 excess as expense for textbook aid even though only $150,000 of textbooks were actually purchased. The district in this example would designate/claim the remainder of their reported eligible expenditures as they appeared on the ST-3. Note: The total of Column 3 designated expenses across all areas must not exceed the total reported expense eligible for aid (Column 1).
Columns 4 and 5. Under the old provisions, this district would have received aid equal to the lesser of the maximum allocation (Column 2) or their reported actual expenses eligible for aid (Column 1) in each area, for a total of $249,200. Under the new provisions, the district receives the lesser of the maximum allocation in each area (Column 2) or their designated expenses (Column 3) for a total of $289,200. However, the total aid amount across all categories (Column 5) may not exceed the total reported eligible expenses across all areas (Column 1).