Sec. 10-217a. Health services for children in private nonprofit schools. Payments from the state, towns in which children reside and private nonprofit schools. - Connecticut Statutes

      Sec. 10-217a. Health services for children in private nonprofit schools. Payments from the state, towns in which children reside and private nonprofit schools. (a) Each town or regional school district which provides health services for children attending its public schools in any grade, from kindergarten to twelve, inclusive, shall provide the same health services for children in such grades attending private nonprofit schools therein, when a majority of the children attending such schools are residents of the state of Connecticut. Any such town or district may also provide such services for children in prekindergarten programs in such private nonprofit schools when a majority of the children attending such schools are residents of the state of Connecticut. Such determination shall be based on the percentage of resident pupils enrolled in such school on October first, or the full school day immediately preceding such date, during the school year next prior to that in which the health services are to be provided. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to require a town or district to provide such services to any child who is not a resident of this state. Such health services shall include the services of a school physician, school nurse and dental hygienist, provided such health services shall not include special education services which, if provided to public school students, would be eligible for reimbursement pursuant to section 10-76g. For purposes of this section, a resident is a person with continuous and permanent physical presence within the state, except that temporary absences for short periods of time shall not affect the establishment of residency.

      (b) Any town or regional school district providing such services for children attending such private schools shall be reimbursed by the state for a percentage of the amount paid from local tax revenues for such services as follows:

      (1) The percentage of the amount paid from local tax revenues for such services reimbursed to a local board of education shall be determined by (A) ranking each town in the state in descending order from one to one hundred sixty-nine according to such town's adjusted equalized net grand list per capita, as defined in section 10-261; (B) based upon such ranking, (i) for reimbursement paid in the fiscal year ending June 30, 1990, a percentage of not less than forty-five or more than ninety shall be determined for each town on a continuous scale, except that for any town in which the number of children under the temporary family assistance program, as defined in subdivision (17) of section 10-262f, is greater than one per cent of the total population of the town, as defined in subdivision (7) of subsection (a) of section 10-261, the percentage shall be not less than eighty, (ii) for reimbursement paid in the fiscal years ending June 30, 1991, to June 30, 2001, inclusive, a percentage of not less than ten or more than ninety shall be determined for each town on a continuous scale, except that for any town in which the number of children under the temporary family assistance program, as defined in subdivision (17) of section 10-262f, is greater than one per cent of the total population of the town, as defined in subdivision (7) of subsection (a) of section 10-261, and for any town which has a wealth rank greater than thirty when towns are ranked pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this subdivision and which provides such services to greater than one thousand five hundred children who are not residents of the town, the percentage shall be not less than eighty, and (iii) for reimbursement paid in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2002, and each fiscal year thereafter, a percentage of not less than ten or more than ninety shall be determined for each town on a continuous scale, except that for any town in which the number of children under the temporary family assistance program, as defined in subdivision (17) of section 10-262f, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1997, was greater than one per cent of the total population of the town, as defined in subdivision (7) of subsection (a) of section 10-261, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1997, and for any town which has a wealth rank greater than thirty when towns are ranked pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this subdivision and which provides such services to greater than one thousand five hundred children who are not residents of the town, the percentage shall be not less than eighty.

      (2) The percentage of the amount paid from local tax revenues for such services reimbursed to a regional board of education shall be determined by its ranking. Such ranking shall be determined by (A) multiplying the total population, as defined in section 10-261, of each town in the district by such town's ranking, as determined in subdivision (1) of this subsection, (B) adding together the figures determined under subparagraph (A) of this subdivision, and (C) dividing the total computed under subparagraph (B) of this subdivision by the total population of all towns in the district. The ranking of each regional board of education shall be rounded to the next higher whole number and each such board shall receive the same reimbursement percentage as would a town with the same rank.

      (c) Any town or regional school district which provides such services shall file an application for such reimbursement not later than the September fifteenth following the fiscal year in which the services were provided on a form to be provided by the State Board of Education. Payment shall be made not later than the following January fifteenth.

      (d) (1) Upon written notification from the town or regional school district providing such services, the town of which children attending such private schools are residents shall pay to the town or regional school district which provided such services during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1989, a proportionate share of the average unreimbursed cost per child for providing such services. Such proportionate share shall be equal to (A) the difference between the amount paid by a town or regional school district for providing such services for children attending such private schools and the state grant received by or due to such town or regional school district pursuant to subsections (b) and (c) of this section for providing such services, divided by (B) the total number of children attending such private schools in the town or regional school district and multiplied by (C) the number of children who are residents of the town and who attend such private schools in the town or regional school district providing such services.

      (2) Payment to a town or regional school district pursuant to the provisions of this subsection shall not make a town making such a payment eligible for reimbursement under the provisions of subsection (b) of this section.

      (3) Upon written notification from the town or regional school district providing such services, any such private school shall pay to the town or regional school district which provided such services during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1989, the difference between the amount paid by the town or regional school district for providing such services for children attending such private school and the sum of (A) the state grant received by or due to such town or regional school district pursuant to subsections (b) and (c) of this section for providing such services, (B) payments received by or due to such town or regional school district pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection for providing such services and (C) the proportionate share of the average unreimbursed cost per child for providing such services to children who are residents of the town providing such services and who attend such private school, such share which shall be equal to (i) the difference between the amount paid by the town or regional school district for providing such services for children attending such private school and the state grant received by or due to such town or regional school district pursuant to subsections (b) and (c) of this section for providing such services, divided by (ii) the total number of children attending such private school and multiplied by (iii) the number of children who are residents of the town providing such services and who attend such private school.

      (e) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section to the contrary, any town (1) in which more than four hundred children who are not residents of the state attend private nonprofit schools which are in the town and in which a majority of the children attending such schools are residents of the state and (2) for which the percentage of the amount paid from local tax revenues reimbursed to the local board of education pursuant to subsection (b) of this section is less than fifteen per cent may, at its discretion, provide such services to children in such private nonprofit schools who are not residents of the state.

      (f) The pay of certificated personnel shall be subject to the rules and regulations providing for deduction for the state Teacher's Retirement Fund by the board of education of such town applicable to certificated teaching personnel in the public schools of such town. This subsection shall be retroactive to July 1, 1968.

      (g) A town or regional school district may provide, at its own expense, the services of a school psychologist, speech remedial services, school social worker's services and special language teachers for non-English-speaking students to children attending private nonprofit schools in such town or district.

      (h) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, for the fiscal years ending June 30, 2006, and June 30, 2007, the amount of the grants payable to local or regional boards of education in accordance with this section shall be reduced proportionately if the total of such grants in such year exceeds the amount appropriated for purposes of this section.

      (i) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, for the fiscal years ending June 30, 2008, and June 30, 2009, the amount of the grants payable to local or regional boards of education in accordance with this section shall be reduced proportionately if the total of such grants in such year exceeds the amount appropriated for purposes of this section.

      (1967, P.A. 481, S. 1, 2; 1969, P.A. 568, S. 1; 1972, P.A. 296, S. 1; P.A. 83-422, S. 1, 2; P.A. 84-255, S. 10, 21; P.A. 85-249, S. 1, 3; P.A. 88-360, S. 23, 63; P.A. 89-355, S. 6, 20; P.A. 90-225, S. 3, 10; 90-325, S. 28, 32; 91-303, S. 15, 22; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-7, S. 8, 22; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2, S. 12, 165; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-1, S. 9, 54; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 1; P.A. 04-257, S. 11; P.A. 05-245, S. 14; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 07-3, S. 1.)

      History: 1969 act added Subsec. (c) re deductions from pay of certificated personnel; 1972 act amended Subsec. (a) to require health and welfare services in private schools when majority of students from Connecticut rather than from the municipality in which private school located; P.A. 83-422 amended Subsec. (a) to provide for method of determining when a majority of children attending private schools are from the state, and to add language concerning provision of clerical, supervisory and administrative services necessary to offer health and welfare services; P.A. 84-255 amended Subsecs. (a) and (b) adding reference to regional school districts; P.A. 85-249 amended section to permit towns to provide health and welfare services to children in prekindergarten programs in private nonprofit schools, to clarify that such services do not include special education services and to add a definition of residency; P.A. 88-360 added Subsec. (d) re reimbursement for health and welfare services for children attending incorporated or endowed high schools or academies; P.A. 89-355 in Subsec. (a) made the determination of the number of resident children based on the number enrolled on October first rather than the average of those enrolled on October first and May first and made a technical change, in Subsec. (b) provided that reimbursement from the state be a percentage of the amount paid from local tax revenues rather than the full amount paid from such revenues, added new Subsec. (c) designation, added new Subsec. (d) re reimbursement from sending school districts and private schools, relettered Subsec. (c) as Subsec. (e) and deleted obsolete former Subsec. (d) re reimbursement for providing health and welfare services to children attending incorporated or endowed high schools or academies; P.A. 90-225 in Subsec. (b)(1) limited the 45% to 90% reimbursement scale to reimbursement paid in the fiscal year ending June 30, 1990, provided that for fiscal years thereafter the scale be 10% to 90% with a minimum of 80% for certain towns and made a technical change, in Subsec. (c) specified that applications be filed not later than September fifteenth and that payment be made not later than the following January fifteenth, in Subsec. (d) limited the payments to towns by other towns and private schools to payments for services during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1989, and inserted a new Subdiv. (2) designation making previous Subdiv. (2) Subdiv. (3) and in Subsec. (e) made a technical change; P.A. 90-325 added new Subsec. (e) re certain towns' discretionary powers to provide health and welfare services to nonresident children enrolled in private schools and relettered Subsec. (e) as (f); P.A. 91-303 in Subsec. (a) added language specifying that towns need not provide services to children who are not residents of this state; June Sp. Sess. 91-7 removed the requirement to provide welfare services, including the services of a school psychologist, speech remedial services, school social worker's services, special language teachers for non-English-speaking students, and such clerical supervisory and administrative services necessary to the provision of health and welfare services, and added Subsec. (g) re towns' discretionary power to provide certain services at their own expense; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2 amended Subsec. (b) to replace references to aid to families with dependent children with temporary family assistance and made technical changes, effective July 1, 1997; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-1 amended Subsec. (b)(1) to limit Subpara. (B)(ii) to the fiscal years ending June 30, 1991, to June 30, 2001, inclusive, and to add Subpara. (B)(iii) re the fiscal years ending June 30, 2002, and June 30, 2003, effective July 1, 2001; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 amended Subsec. (b)(1) by making grant permanent, effective August 20, 2003; P.A. 04-257 made technical changes in Subsec. (b)(1), effective June 14, 2004; P.A. 05-245 added new Subsec. (h) re proportional reduction of grants for the fiscal years ending June 30, 2006, and June 30, 2007, effective July 1, 2005; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 07-3 added Subsec. (i) re proportional reduction of grants for the fiscal years ending June 30, 2008, and June 30, 2009, effective July 1, 2007.