LtrQ4-14: EPA Payment letter, FY 14-15 Q4

June 15, 2015

Dear County Superintendents of Schools:

Notice of the Fourth Quarterly Apportionment for the
Education Protection Account
Fiscal Year 2014–15

This apportionment, in the amount of $2,781,875,965, is made from the Education Protection Account (EPA), in accordance with Proposition 30, The Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012, as enacted by Section 36 of Article XIII, of the Constitution of the State of California. This apportionment is made for the support of county offices of education, school districts, and charter schools as directed by law.

Using a revised 2014–15 EPA revenue estimate of approximately $7.75 billion, the California Department of Education (CDE) recalculated estimated EPA entitlements using a factor of 26.66368816 percent based on the statewide total of adjusted revenue limits and charter school block grant funding as of the 2014–15 Second Principal (P-2) Apportionment. With the implementation of the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) in fiscal year 2013–14, EPA entitlements will continue to be calculated based on adjusted revenue limits, including the allowance for necessary small schools, and charter school block grant funding, in accordance with Proposition 30. These funding amounts continue as components of the LCFF Floor calculation.

Each local educational agency’s (LEA’s) EPA entitlement was reduced so that funding from local property taxes and the EPA combined did not exceed the LEA’s adjusted revenue limit or charter school general purpose funding, provided that each LEA received the minimum EPA funding at a rate of $200 per unit of average daily attendance (ADA). Additionally, charter schools newly operational in the 2013–14 fiscal year and after, received the minimum funding of $200 per ADA. Except for LEAs fully funded through local revenue, EPA funding offsets LCFF state aid allocated through the Principal Apportionment.

Fiscal year 2013–14 EPA entitlements became final as of the 2013–14 Annual Apportionment and have not changed from the Third Quarterly Apportionment for the EPA. Any adjustment (positive or negative) in 2013–14 EPA entitlements calculated between 2013–14 P-2 and 2013–14 Annual has been applied against an LEA’s 2014–15 current year apportionment. For more information on adjustments to the 2013–14 EPA entitlements, refer to the letter dated March 12, 2015, for the Third Quarterly Apportionment which can be found on CDE’s Web site indicated below.

The CDE will allocate EPA revenues on a quarterly basis through the 2018–19 fiscal year. This quarterly apportionment equals 100 percent of each LEA’s 2014–15 EPA entitlement, net of 2013–14 adjustments, less any amounts previously apportioned from September 2014 through March 2015. Future payments may be adjusted for ADA changes and previous over- or under- payments of EPA funds.

County treasurers will receive warrants for this apportionment on June 26, 2015, and should advise school districts and charter schools immediately of this apportionment. For standardized account code structure (SACS) coding for current year funds, use Resource 1400, Education Protection Account, and Revenue Object 8012, Education Protection Account Entitlement. The 2013–14 EPA entitlement adjustment from P-2 to Annual that was not accrued in the prior year should be recorded to Resource 1400 using Object 8019, Revenue Limit State Aid – Prior Years.

LEAs should be aware that Proposition 30 requires an LEA’s governing board to make spending determinations for EPA funds at an open public meeting and that LEAs report on their Web sites an accounting of how much money was received from the EPA and how that money was spent. For additional information on EPA calculations, letters of apportionment, payment schedules, spending restrictions, frequently asked questions, SACS financial reporting and more, please refer to the CDE Web page at http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/aa/pa/epa.asp.

If you have questions regarding the EPA entitlement calculation, please contact the Office of Principal Apportionment and Special Education by phone at 916-324-4541 or by e-mail at PASE@cde.ca.gov. For questions related to SACS financial reporting, please contact the Office of Financial Accountability and Information Services by phone at 916-322-1770 or by e-mail at sacsinfo@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,



Caryn Moore, Associate Director
Local Control Funding Formula Section

CM:th