(1) The commissioner shall create and convene the public school finance task force. The purpose of the task force is to examine and make recommendations concerning making the school finance formula simpler, less regressive, and more adequate, understandable, transparent, equitable, and student-centered. (a) The task force membership consists of the following voting members: (I) Appointed by the president of the senate: (A) One member who is a superintendent of a school district whose district percentage of at-risk pupils is greater than the statewide average percentage of at-risk pupils; (B) One member who is a chief financial officer of a school district whose district percentage of English language learner pupils is greater than the statewide average percentage of English language learner pupils; (C) One member who represents an organization that represents teachers; (D) One member who represents an organization with expertise in school finance; and (E) One member who is a principal; (II) Appointed by the minority leader of the senate: (A) One member who is a superintendent of a school district whose average assessed property value is less than the statewide average of assessed property value; (B) One member who is a school leader of a charter school whose percentage of at-risk pupils is greater than the statewide average percentage of at-risk pupils; (C) One member who represents an organization with expertise in school finance; and (D) One member who represents an organization that represents children and families; (III) Appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives: (A) One member who is a superintendent of a rural school district or small rural school district; (B) One member who is a school leader of a charter school with a percentage of English language learner pupils that is greater than the statewide average percentage of English language learner pupils in charter schools; (C) Two members who represent organizations with expertise in school finance; and (D) One member who is a teacher; (IV) Appointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives: (A) One member who is a chief financial officer of a small rural school district; (B) One member who represents the charter school institute; and (C) One member who represents an organization with expertise in business and kindergarten through twelfth grade education. (b) The task force membership consists of the following non-voting members: (I) The director of the legislative council staff, or the director's designee; (II) The director of the joint budget committee staff, or the director's designee; and (III) The commissioner's designee from the department of education who has technical expertise in school finance. (2) The task force shall meet at the call of the chair not more than eight times following the first meeting from July 2023 through December 2023. Meetings may be held in person, through the use of audio-visual communication technology, or both. The task force is a state public body for purposes of section 24-6-402, and meetings of the task force are subject to section 24-6-402. The task force is subject to the provisions of the "Colorado Open Records Act", part 2 of article 72 of title 24. (3) (a) The task force members serve without compensation but may be reimbursed for expenses directly relating to their service on the task force. (b) If a vacancy occurs, the original appointing authority shall promptly appoint a new member who meets the same requirements as the member who vacated the task force. (4) (a) The department of education shall provide to the task force staff support, meeting space, and audio-visual communication technology resources, upon request of the chair. (b) The department shall contract with a third-party entity with expertise in task force facilitation and stakeholder input to assist with the administration of the task force and drafting the report pursuant to subsection (6) of this section. (5) The task force shall make findings and recommendations regarding the following changes to the school finance formula to occur for the 2024-25 budget year: (a) Eliminating the use of multiplicative indexes for cost of living, personnel and non- personnel costs, and district size; (b) Recalibrating the cost of living factor, capping the cost of living factor, or alternative methods to account for the cost of living, including through categorical funding. A recommendation concerning a revised cost of living factor must be able to regularly change as a result of the biennial cost of living study. (c) Prioritizing student needs in the formula, including measures, to the extent possible, that align the at-risk factor, English language learner factor, and special education categorical funding based upon available evidence-based research on student-centered funding that has a direct impact on student outcomes; (d) Revising the size factor to incorporate considerations other than or in addition to student enrollment, including the remoteness of a school district; and (e) Securing equalization in mill levy overrides for institute charter schools based upon the school district where the institute charter school is geographically located, including considerations for students who do not reside in the school district where the institute charter school is geographically located, multi-district online programs, and total program funding. (6) (a) Not later than January 31, 2024, the task force shall submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the education committees of the senate and house of representatives, or any successor committees, and the joint budget committee. (b) The task force's report must include findings of actual outcomes on school districts and institute charter schools if the recommendations were adopted. (7) (a) The task force shall develop the parameters for a study to examine and make recommendations concerning the components and costs necessary to adequately provide Colorado students a free and uniform public education. (b) The department of education shall contract with two independent entities, each of whom shall conduct a study and publish a report concerning the parameters developed by the task force pursuant to subsection (7)(a) of this section. (c) In selecting the two independent entities, the department of education shall select entities that represent different perspectives concerning school finance for the purpose of generating different examinations and recommendations concerning the components and costs necessary to adequately provide Colorado students a free and uniform public education. (d) Not later than January 3, 2025, the two independent entities shall submit their reports of findings and recommendations to the task force. Not later than January 3, 2025, the commissioner shall submit the reports to the education committees of the senate and house of representatives, or any successor committees, and the joint budget committee. (8) Any money appropriated for the 2023-24 budget year by the general assembly to the department of education for the purposes of this section that remains unspent at the end of the 2023-24 budget year may be used by the department of education through the 2024-25 budget year without further appropriation and must not be used for any other purpose than the purposes set forth in this section. (9) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires: (a) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of education appointed pursuant to section 1 of article IX of the state constitution. (b) "Rural school district" means a school district in Colorado that the department of education determines is rural, based on the geographic size of the district and the distance from the nearest large, urbanized area, and that had a funded pupil count for the prior budget year of one thousand pupils or more but less than six thousand five hundred pupils. (c) "Small rural school district" means a school district in Colorado that the department of education determines is small rural, based on the geographic size of the district and the distance from the nearest large, urbanized area, and that had a funded pupil count for the prior budget year of less than one thousand pupils. (d) "Task force" means the public school finance task force created pursuant to this section. (10) This section is repealed, effective July 1, 2025.
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