Mill Levy Equalization & Institute Charter Schools
Summary
SB25-223 changes how Colorado calculates and distributes mill levy equalization funding for Institute Charter Schools. The bill amends the statute governing the Charter School Institute’s mill levy equalization program to require that annual distributions be made on an equal per-pupil basis, but it excludes pupils enrolled in multi-district online schools authorized by the Institute. It also limits the amount an institute charter school may receive so that it does not exceed the additional mill levy revenue its accounting district is authorized to collect, divided by the district’s funded pupil count.
Beginning in the 2025-26 budget year, the bill prohibits the Institute from distributing any portion of these funds to multi-district online schools it authorizes. It also adds a new rule for the 2024-25 budget year requiring the General Assembly to deduct additional mill levy revenue received by an institute charter school from the amount needed to fully fund mill levy equalization. The bill includes a state budget adjustment, reducing the cash funds appropriation from the State Education Fund for CSI mill levy equalization by $1,008,494.
Impact
The bill narrows and refines the state’s mill levy equalization funding formula for Charter School Institute schools by excluding authorized multi-district online schools from future distributions and by offsetting equalization funding when a school district already provides additional mill levy revenue. As a result, some institute charter schools—especially online programs—will receive less or no funding under this program, and the Charter School Institute and the Department of Education will administer a smaller appropriation for CSI mill levy equalization.
Sentiment
The recorded votes suggest the bill was generally well received and not highly controversial in the legislature. It advanced through Senate Appropriations unanimously, passed third reading in the Senate 29-0, and later passed House third reading 61-2 after a 10-1 House Appropriations vote. The broad bipartisan support indicates agreement on the need to adjust the funding formula and reduce the appropriation accordingly.
Contention
The main substantive issue is the treatment of multi-district online schools authorized by the Charter School Institute. By excluding those schools from equalization distributions beginning in 2025-26, the bill shifts funding away from online charter programs and toward other institute charter schools. Another point of interest is the offset for schools that already receive additional mill levy revenue from their local district, which reduces the state’s equalization obligation. The near-unanimous votes suggest these provisions were not strongly contested, though the small number of no votes in the House indicates limited disagreement over the funding changes or their budgetary effects.