ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Fifty-fifth Legislature

First Regular Session

Senate: APPROP DP 10-0-0-0 | 3rd Read 30-0-0-0

House: WM DPA 10-0-0-0

SB 1449: schools; state aid; adjustment

Sponsor:  Senator Kerr, LD 13

Caucus & COW

Overview

Allows school district governing boards to request — subject to review by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) — that the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) recalculate state aid if there is a change in assessed valuation that occurred as the result of a county or state board of equalization decision.

History

If the SPI determines that a school's state aid calculation or budget limits within the previous years did not conform with statutory requirements, the SPI must require the errors to be corrected in one of three manners:

1)   Corrections may be made in the current year or the budget year;

2)   If there is a state aid calculation error, the school district's or charter school's state aid is to either be increased or decreased in the year(s) in which the correction is made; or

3)   If there is an error in the school district's or charter school's budget limits, there must be a public hearing to require the governing board or governing body to reduce or allow it to increase its budget by the amount of the correction to be made that year. (A.R.S. § 15-915)

Currently, the SPI, subject to review by JLBC, must adjust state aid for a school district in the current year if the school district governing board requests the recalculation of state aid for a prior year due to a change in assessed valuation that occurred as a result of a court judgment relating to a property tax appeal (A.R.S. § 15-915, 42-16213).

A property owner may file a petition with the assessor if — in the owner's opinion — the property has been valued too highly, improperly listed on the roll or otherwise improperly valued (A.R.S. § 42-16051). The assessor is given authority to consider all petitions and rule on each (A.R.S. § 42-16055). A decision of a county assessor may be appealed to a county board of equalization (A.R.S. § 42-16105). If a county board of equalization is not established in the county where the property is located, the petitioner may appeal the assessor's decision to the state board of equalization (A.R.S §  42-16157). The State Board of Equalization is an independent agency that is not subject to the supervision or control of the Department of Revenue (A.R.S § 42-16152).

Provisions

1.   ☐ Prop 105 (45 votes) ☐ Prop 108 (40 votes) ☐ Emergency (40 votes) ☐ Fiscal NoteAdds that the SPI, subject to review by JLBC, must adjust state aid for a school district in the current year if the school district governing board requests the recalculation of state aid for a prior year due to a change in assessed valuation that occurred as a result of:

a)   A decision by a county board of equalization; or

b)   A decision by the State Board of Equalization. (Sec. 1)

2.   Contains a retroactivity clause of July 1, 2019. (Sec. 1)

3.   Contains technical changes. (Sec. 1)

Amendments

Committee on Ways and Means

1.   Adds that the SPI, subject to review by JLBC, must adjust state aid for a school district in the current year if the school district governing board requests the recalculation of state aid for a prior year due to a change in assessed valuation that occurred as a result of a correction of a property tax error.

 

 

 

 

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                        SB 1449

Initials VP/NM Page 0 Caucus & COW

 

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