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Dear County Superintendents of Schools:

First Apportionment for the
SB 117 COVID-19 LEA Response Funds
Fiscal Year 2019–20

This apportionment, in the amount of $100,000,000, is made from the General Fund as provided by Section 9 of Senate Bill 117 (Chapter 3, Statutes of 2020) to local educational agencies (LEAs) in support of the SB 117 COVID-19 LEA Response Funds (SB 117 Funds). This apportionment reflects 100 percent of available funds.

Funding is allocated to each county office of education, school district, and charter school (both local and direct funded) on the basis of average daily attendance (ADA), excluding charter school nonclassroom based (NCB) ADA, funded as of the 2019–20 First Principal Apportionment. Each state special school is funded on an ADA equivalent factor equal to 97 percent of each state special school’s total enrollment count certified in the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS) as of the 2019–20 Fall 1 Submission. Each LEA, excluding charter schools that generate 100 percent NCB ADA, received a minimum funding allocation of $250 and had to be operational as of March 4, 2020.

SB  117 Funds are allowed to be used for costs associated with maintaining nutrition services, cleaning and disinfecting facilities, personal protective equipment, and materials necessary to provide students with opportunities for distance learning. The priority for these funds is health and safety needs for LEAs, including for student meal access, during COVID-19 closure periods. Due to the emergency nature of these funds, the funding allocation formula and allowable uses of funds contained in this letter may not closely align with the appropriation language in Section 9 of Senate Bill 117, but are in concurrence with the Department of Finance and the Legislature. Clean-up language will be forthcoming in future legislation.

County superintendents of schools were notified of this apportionment by email via their CDEfisc email addresses. The California Department of Education (CDE) requests that the CDEfisc email be forwarded to all school districts and charter schools in each county. A link to this letter and the accompanying apportionment schedule is posted on CDE’s Categorical Programs web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/aa/ca/, under the program title “SB 117 COVID-19 LEA Response Funds.”

Warrants will be mailed to each county treasurer approximately one week from the date of this letter. For standardized account code structure coding, use Resource Code 7388, SB 117 COVID-19 LEA Response Funds, and Revenue Object Code 8590, All Other State Revenue.

If you have any questions regarding this apportionment, please contact Julie Klein Briggs, Fiscal Consultant, Categorical Allocations and Audit Resolution Office, by email at jbriggs@cde.ca.gov [Note: The preceding contact and email information is no longer valid. Please contact the Categorical Allocations and Audit Resolution Office at CAAR@cde.ca.gov.].

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Dearstyne, Director
School Fiscal Services Division

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