Wisconsin Legislature: 002 - CR 16-005 Rule Text

(4) BACKGROUND CHECKS. The school shall conduct a criminal background check prior to employing any individual at the school. The school shall conduct the criminal background check for all employees, including contracted individuals. The school may not employ any of the following individuals:

(a) Individuals who have engaged in immoral conduct as defined under s. 115.31 (1) (c), Stats.

(b) Individuals who are not eligible for a teaching license under s. 118.19 (4), Stats.

(5) CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY.

(a) By May 1 prior to the first year a school participates in the special needs scholarship program, a school shall submit one of the following to the department for each of the locations of the school:

1. A certificate of occupancy issued by the municipality within which the building is located.

2. If the municipality within which the building is located does not issue certificates of occupancy, a certificate of occupancy issued by the local or regional governmental unit with authority to issue certificates of occupancy.

3. A letter or form from the municipality within which the building is located that explains that the municipality does not issue certificates of occupancy.

(b) If a school moves to a new location or adds a new location, the school shall submit to the department one of the following before pupils attend the new location:

1. A certificate of occupancy issued by the municipality within which the building is located.

3. A letter or form from the municipality within which the building is located that explains that the municipality does not issue certificates of occupancy.

(c)

A temporary certificate of occupancy does not meet the requirement of this subsection.

(6) Accreditation Requirements. Annually by August 1, a school participating in the special needs scholarship program shall provide to the department a letter from the school’s accrediting agency stating that the school is accredited as of the date of the letter. The letter shall meet all of the following requirements:

(a) The letter shall include the following information:

1. The school’s name.

2. The school’s address for each location included in the accreditation.

3. The grades accredited.

4. A statement that the school is accredited as of the date of the letter.

(b) The letter shall be dated no earlier than the beginning of the school year.

PI 49.04 Financial information and surety bond.

(1)

BOND REQUIREMENTS. The department shall calculate the amount of scholarships expected to be received by each school based on the number of pupils included in a school’s notice of intent to participate submitted under s. PI 49.03 (3). If a school expects to receive at least $50,000 in scholarships, the school shall do one of the following:

(a) Annually by June 1 prior to the school year, provide a bond payable to the state of Wisconsin equal to 25 percent of the total amount of scholarships expected to be received by the school during the school year.

(b) Annually by March 1 prior to the school year, submit financial information to the department that demonstrates that the school has the ability to pay an amount equal to the total amount of scholarships expected to be received by the school during the school year, including all of the following:

1. A budget and cash flow report, on a form provided by the department, for the ensuing school year that contains all of the following:

a. Anticipated enrollments for all pupils enrolled in the school.

b. Anticipated enrollments for special needs scholarship program pupils.

c. Estimated total revenues and costs.

d. Estimated special needs scholarship program revenues and costs.

e. A schedule of anticipated beginning and ending net program assets.

2. A statement of whether the school has any past due amounts, interest, or penalties due to the U.S. internal revenue service, the Wisconsin department of workforce development, or the Wisconsin department of revenue. An amount must be disclosed even if it is in dispute. If a school has past due amounts, interest, or penalties due to a government entity, the school shall do all of the following:

a. Disclose to the department the outstanding amount owed.

b. Submit to the department statements or other correspondence from the government entity stating the amount the government entity claims is due, the amount in dispute, and nature of the amount due.

3. The most recent balance sheet and income statement for the legal entity of the school.

4. Bank statements for all cash and investment accounts included in the balance sheet required under subd. 3.

5. Any other information required by the department to determine the financial position of the school.

Note: The budget and cash flow report may be obtained at no charge from the Wisconsin department of public instruction’s webpage at http://sms.dpi.wi.gov/.

(2) FINANCIAL INFORMATION REVIEW. The department shall review the financial information provided by a school under sub. (1) (b) and any other information available to the department to determine if the school meets the requirements under s. 115.7915 (6) (f) 2., Stats. In making a determination, the department shall remove the special needs scholarship program revenue from the school’s budget to determine if any of the following indicators exist:

(a) The school has inadequate revenues and other financial resources to fund current operations in the budget submitted under sub. (1) (b).

(b) The school has negative cash flows in any month in the budget submitted under sub. (1) (b).

(d) The school has a negative net current obligation in its financial audit or in the budget submitted under sub. (1) (b). The net current obligation shall be calculated as the current assets less the current liabilities.

(e) The school has a net operating loss in the financial audit or in the budget submitted under sub. (1) (b).

(f) The audit opinion statement included in the financial audit contains a qualification as to the school’s ability to continue as a going concern.

(g) The school failed to make payments to vendors as required by written agreement or, if there is no written agreement, within 90 days of invoice or payment request. The department shall consider this an indicator even if the school has entered into a payment plan with the vendor to pay the past due amount.

(h) The school has past due amounts with government agencies, including payment of employee withholdings. The department shall consider this an indicator even if the school has entered into a payment plan with the government agency to pay the past due amount.

(i) The school failed to pay its employees as required by ch. 109, Stats., or written agreement with the employee.

(3) INSUFFICIENT FINANCIAL INFORMATION. The department shall determine that a school does not meet the requirements under s. 115.7915 (6) (f) 2., Stats., if any of the indicators under sub. (2) exist. A school that does not meet the requirements under s. 115.7915 (6) (f) 2., Stats., shall provide a surety bond that meets the requirements under sub. (1) (a) by June 1 prior to the school year.

(4) BOND CALL PROVISIONS. The department may call a bond submitted by a school under this section for any of the following reasons:

(a)

The school failed to timely file the financial audit or the reports required under s. PI 49.07 (1).

(b)

The school failed to timely refund the department any amount certified due from the school under s. PI 49.07 (4).

(c)

The school failed to timely refund the department the reserve balance as prescribed under s. PI 49.09.

(d)

The school failed to timely refund the department any other money owed to the department for any other reason under this chapter or s. 115.7915, Stats.

PI 49.05 Pupil application requirements.

(1) RESIDENCY ELIGIBILITY. A school shall obtain one of the residency documents specified by the department from a parent on the application that shows the applicant resides at the address on the application at the time of application. The residency document shall be dated no earlier than three months prior to the start of the open application period in which an applicant applies. If a school receives a lease agreement as a residency document, the lease term shall include the date the application was received. The document shall contain the name of the parent on the application and match the address on the application.

(2) ADDRESS VERIFICATION. A school shall verify that the address on a pupil’s application is in the Wisconsin school district listed on the application using the state of Wisconsin’s Statewide Voter Registration System or another manner permitted by the department.

(3) APPLICATION RECEIPT. A school may only receive an application during an open application period on the notice of intent to participate submitted under s. PI 49.03 (3). The school shall receive all documentation, including the documentation required under sub. (1), during the same open application period in which the school receives the application.

(4) EXPLANATION OF RIGHTS. When an applicant applies to a school, the school shall provide the applicant’s parent with all of the following:

(a) An explanation of the rights of a child with a disability and his or her parent in a public school compared to the rights of a child with a disability and his or her parent at a school participating in the special needs scholarship program on a document provided by the department under s. 115.7915 (4) (a) 1., Stats.

(b) The profile of the school’s special education program provided under s. PI 49.03 (3) (c).

(5) CURRENT INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM OR SERVICES PLAN. A school shall ensure the pupil has an individualized education program or services plan that is in effect at the time of application.

(6) INELIGIBLE APPLICATIONS. An application shall be determined ineligible if any of the following apply:

(a) The application does not comply with this section or s. 115.7915 (2), Stats., and a correction of the application under sub. (7) is not allowable.

(b) The application contains contradictory information.

(7) CORRECTING APPLICATIONS. A school shall correct an application in the following circumstances and manner:

(a) The school shall correct an application by December 15 for applications received during an open application period prior to the third Friday in September and by May 1 for applications received during an open application period after the third Friday in September. If the school does not correct the application as required in this subsection by the specified date, the application is ineligible.

(b) The school shall obtain additional residency documentation after the open application period in which the application was received that meets the requirements in sub. (1) if all of the following apply:

1. The school received residency documentation from the parent on the application during the open application period in which the application was received and the residency documentation contained an address and the name of the parent on the application, even if the parent’s name is misspelled or is a different legal name for the parent.

2. The additional residency documentation is in the parent’s name, contains the applicant’s correct address, and meets the requirements in sub. (2).

Note: The application may be obtained at no charge from the Wisconsin department of public instruction’s webpage at http://sms.dpi.wi.gov/.

PI 49.06 School year enrollment.

(1) APPLICATION ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION. A school shall make application eligibility determinations based on the requirements under s. PI 49.05 and s. 115.7915 (2), Stats. A school shall make eligibility determinations and report accepted applications to the department prior to the next open application period or prior to the next count date, whichever occurs first. A school shall notify each applicant in writing whether the school accepted or denied the applicant’s application.

(2) DOCUMENT RETENTION. A school shall retain all of the following records for at least 5 years from the end of the school year in which the pupil applies or 5 years after the pupil no longer attends the school, whichever occurs later, unless the department or a law enforcement agency requires the school to retain the records for a longer period:

(a) Copies of pupil paper applications, individualized education programs or services plans, and supporting residency documentation required under s. PI 49.05 (1) for all accepted and non-accepted special needs scholarship program pupils who have submitted applications to the school.

(b) Copies of all notices to a pupil or pupil’s parent regarding acceptance and non-acceptance.

(3) SIMULTANEOUSLY ENROLLED PUPIL. A pupil participating in the special needs scholarship program may not be simultaneously enrolled, in or out of Wisconsin, in another private school, a home-based private educational program, a charter school under s. 118.40 (2r) or (2x), Stats., or a public school district and receive a scholarship.

(4) SEPTEMBER 1 APPLICATION AND CLASS LIST SUBMISSION. Annually by September 1, a school shall submit to the department in the online application system or other manner specified by the department all of the following:

(a) A list of pupils participating in the special needs scholarship program at the school that identifies if each pupil was determined to no longer be a child with a disability under s. 115.7915 (4m) (e) 1, Stats., in a previous year.

(b) A class list of all pupils participating in the special needs scholarship program enrolled in the school that includes the grade level for each pupil. The class list may not include pupils that have withdrawn from the school.