53F-6-411. Program funding.
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Effective 3/6/2025
53F-6-411. Program funding.
(1)Except as provided in Subsection (7), if a scholarship student enters or reenters the public education system during a given school year:
(a)no later than five business days after the day on which the student enters or reenters the public education system, the program manager shall direct the financial administrator to immediately remove the balance in the scholarship student's scholarship account for other use within the program;
(b)the state board may not distribute any remaining state funds to the program manager or financial administrator for the student; and
(c)the program manager may direct the financial administrator to use the balance described in Subsection (1)(a) for another scholarship student.
(2)At the end of a school year, a program manager shall:
(a)direct the financial administrator to:
(i)withdraw any remaining scholarship funds in a scholarship account; and
(ii)allocate these funds as rollovers in accordance with Subsection (4); and
(b)return any funds not allocated as rollovers to the program manager or the state board to be deposited in the restricted account described in Subsection
(4).
(a)To administer the program, the program manager may use up to 5% of the funds the Legislature appropriates for the program.
(b)The funds for program administration described in Subsection (3)(a) are nonlapsing.
(c)The program manager may not retain administrative cost balances in excess of 25% of total administrative costs in any fiscal year.
(a)There is created a restricted account within the Income Tax Fund known as the "Utah Fits All Scholarship Program Restricted Account."
(b)The restricted account shall consist of:
(i)money appropriated to the restricted account by the Legislature;
(ii)interest earned on the restricted account; and
(iii)in accordance with Subsection
(6), unused scholarship funds returned to the restricted account under this section.
(a)Subject to legislative appropriations, the state board shall distribute scholarship funds to the program manager or financial administrator from the restricted account in two equal payments:
(i)the first payment at the beginning of the scholarship year; and
(ii)the second payment during the second half of the scholarship year.
(b)Notwithstanding Subsection (5)(a), the program manager may authorize disbursement of a scholarship student's full annual award amount at the beginning of the scholarship year if:
(i)the funds are for private school tuition; or
(ii)the program manager determines immediate disbursement is necessary for the student's education.
(6)The program manager shall:
(a)allow unused scholarship funds to rollover in a 2:1 ratio, where:
(i)for every three dollars of unused scholarship funds, two dollars rollover to the scholarship student to be added to the student's scholarship award for the next scholarship year, up to a maximum rollover amount of $2,000 that may cumulate; and
(ii)the remaining unused funds return to the restricted account;
(b)verify the scholarship student maintains program eligibility before executing any rollover; and
(c)direct the financial administrator to return any unused funds not allocated as rollovers to the restricted account described in this section.
(a)Before determining a student has reentered public education, the program manager shall:
(i)notify the parent in writing of:
(A)the identified public school enrollment; and
(B)the parent's right to verify or dispute the enrollment finding; and
(ii)allow the parent five business days to:
(A)confirm the accuracy of the enrollment; or
(B)provide evidence disputing the enrollment finding.
(b)A parent may appeal an incorrect reentry determination by submitting documentation to the program manager within the time specified in Subsection
(7)(a).
Amended by Chapter 25 , 2025 General Session