1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to education finance; providing declining 
  1.3             pupil aid for economically distressed school 
  1.4             districts; appropriating money. 
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  [FISCAL YEARS 2002 TO 2004 DECLINING PUPIL UNIT 
  1.7   AID; DISTRICTS FACING ECONOMIC DISTRESS AND WORKER DISLOCATION.] 
  1.8      Subdivision 1.  [QUALIFYING DISTRICT.] An economically 
  1.9   distressed school district means independent school districts 
  1.10  Nos. 696, Ely; 706, Virginia; 2154, Eveleth-Gilbert; 2711, 
  1.11  Mesabi East; and that portion of 2142, St. Louis County that 
  1.12  comprises the Babbitt-Embarass, and Tower-Soudan attendance 
  1.13  areas.  For the purposes of this section, the department of 
  1.14  children, families, and learning must separately calculate the 
  1.15  aid under subdivisions 2 to 4 for the Babbitt-Embarass, and 
  1.16  Tower-Soudan attendance areas. 
  1.17     Subd. 2.  [FISCAL YEAR 2002.] For fiscal year 2002, an 
  1.18  economically distressed school district is eligible for 
  1.19  declining pupil unit aid equal to the product of the general 
  1.20  education formula allowance for fiscal year 2002 times 75 
  1.21  percent of the difference between the district's actual pupil 
  1.22  units for the 2000-2001 school year and the district's actual 
  1.23  pupil units for the 2001-2002 school year. 
  1.24     Subd. 3.  [FISCAL YEAR 2003.] For fiscal year 2003, an 
  1.25  economically distressed school district is eligible for 
  2.1   declining pupil unit aid equal to the product of the general 
  2.2   education formula allowance for fiscal year 2003 times 50 
  2.3   percent of the difference between the district's actual pupil 
  2.4   units for the 2000-2001 school year and the district's actual 
  2.5   pupil units for the 2002-2003 school year. 
  2.6      Subd. 4.  [FISCAL YEAR 2004.] For fiscal year 2004, an 
  2.7   economically distressed school district is eligible for 
  2.8   declining pupil unit aid equal to the product of the general 
  2.9   education formula allowance for fiscal year 2004 times 25 
  2.10  percent of the difference between the district's actual pupil 
  2.11  units for the 2000-2001 school year and the district's actual 
  2.12  pupil units for the 2003-2004 school year. 
  2.13     Sec. 2.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  2.14     $....... in 2002 and $....... in 2003 are appropriated from 
  2.15  the general fund to the commissioner of children, families, and 
  2.16  learning for payment of declining pupil aid to economically 
  2.17  distressed school districts.