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By Tom Chorneau
Friday, August 09, 2013
State education officials issued new guidance this week aimed at easing the growing uncertainty among district administrators over the use of billions of dollars already delivered to schools under the new Local Control Funding Formula.
Late last month, local educational agencies statewide received their share of $2.1 billion – the first payment made by the state under the new funding formula that gives local boards far more authority over spending decisions.
The problem is that regulations outlining exactly how the money can be used and how the program should be carried out will not be ready for months – a fact that has many local fiscal officers anxious about spending decisions now that might be called into question later.
Hoping to reassure local officials, state school chief Tom Torlakson and state board president Michael Kirst issued a joint memo Wednesday acknowledging the time gap before the regulations will become available but giving some broad guidance for safe expenditures.
Torlakson and Kirst noted that even though the new system is still a “work in progress,” LEAs are expected to begin “rethinking their approach to planning, budgeting and using” the new funding.
“While the regulations and templates for LCFF will not be in place until the 2014-15 planning and budget cycle, LEAs would be well served to begin thinking in 2013-14 about implementing procedures that support transparency and