R277-445. Classifying Small Schools as Necessarily Existent

R277.  Education, Administration.

R277-445.  Classifying Small Schools as Necessarily Existent.

R277-445-1.  Authority, Purpose, and Oversight Category.

          (1)  This rule is authorized by:

          (a)  Article X, Section 3 of the Utah Constitution, which vests general control and supervision over public education in the Board;

          (b)  Subsection 53F-2-304(3), which requires the Board to adopt rules to adopt a formula to calculate a scale of operations weighting for each student enrolled in a school district in a county of the fourth, fifth, or sixth class as described in Section 17-50-501 or a school district in a county of the third class with fewer than 2,000 students; and

          (c)  Subsection 53E-3-401(4), which allows the Board to make rules to execute the Board's duties and responsibilities under the Utah Constitution and state law.

          (2)  This Rule R277-495 is categorized as Category 4 as described in Rule R277-111.

R277-445-2.  Definitions.

          (1)  "ADM" means average daily membership derived from end-of-year data from the previous school year.

          (2)  "NESS" means Necessarily Existent Small School as defined in Subsection 53F-2-304(1).

          (3)  "Weighted Pupil Unit" or "WPU" means the basic unit used to calculate the amount of state funds a school district may receive.

R277-445-3.  NESS WPUs.

          (1)  The Board shall award NESS Weighted Pupil Units as follows:

          (a)  A scale of operations WPU weighting based on a formula determined by a cost function analysis.

          (b)  No scale of operations weightings shall be awarded to a school district with an ADM greater than 7,700.

          (2)  Rural-school weightings for NESS schools that provide WPUs for each grade band in accordance with Subsection 53F-2-304(2).

          (3)  The funding for ADM that falls within the weighting factors described in Subsections (1)(a) and (1)(b) shall be computed under both weighting factors.

          (4)  In accordance with Subsection 53G-6-305(3)(b)(ii), the Superintendent shall use NESS Program funds to cover out-of-state tuition reimbursements under Rule R277-421.

R277-445-4.  Splitting a School that Qualifies as a Necessarily Existent Small School.

          (1)  A school district that intends to split a school that qualifies as a necessarily existent small school or has qualified as a necessarily existent small school within the past five years shall submit a proposal to the Board as outlined in Subsection 53F-2-304(8).

          (2)  An LEA shall submit a proposal under Subsection (1), no later than July 1 of the  fiscal year prior to the planned split.

          (3)  The Superintendent shall:

          (a)  review an LEA's waiver request; and

          (b)  may provide a recommendation to the Board.

          (4)  The Board Executive Committee may assign a waiver request made under this Rule R277-121 to a Board standing committee.

          (5)  The standing committee assigned in accordance with Subsection (2):

          (a)  may solicit additional information or testimony;

          (b)  shall review the request in an open meeting; and

          (c)  shall make a recommendation for consideration by the full Board.

          (6)  The Board shall consider available data in evaluating an LEA waiver request and shall consider whether the split is:

          (a)  educationally and operationally necessary; and

          (b)  not primarily motivated by financial considerations related to necessarily existent small school funding.

          (7)  The Board may request an LEA that receives approval for a split in accordance with this Rule R277-445 and Section 53F-2-304 to report the following to a Board committee:

          (a)  data that supports continuation of the requested split; and

          (b)  data related to the data the LEA presented as a part of the LEA's request for the split.

R277-445-5.  Incorporation by Reference of the NESS Scale of Operations Weightings.

          (1)  This rule incorporates by reference the NESS Scale of Operations Weightings.

          (2)  A copy of this document is located at:

          (a)  https://www.schools.utah.gov/administrativerules/documentsincorporated; and

          (b)  the offices of the Utah State Board of Education.

KEY:  school enrollment, educational facilities, small schools

Date of Last Change:  October 8, 2025

Notice of Continuation:  August 19, 2021

Authorizing, and Implemented or Interpreted Law:  Art X Sec 3; 53E-3-401(4); 53F-2-304(1)

Status of Rule

Effective October 8, 2025

Five-year review August 19, 2026

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Oversight Framework

Category 4

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Related Utah Law

Public Education Statutes
53F-2-304

Other Statutes
None

USBE Administrative Rules
R277-100, Definitions for USBE Rules

R277-421, Out-of-State Tuition Reimbursement

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Related Federal Law

None

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Resources

None

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Contact Information

Primary Contact:
Dale Frost
dale.frost@schools.utah.gov
Financial Operations

Secondary Contact:
Sam Urie
sam.urie@schools.utah.gov
Financial Operations

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NOTE: The information on this webpage is provided as a service to users and the Utah State Board of Education is not responsible for any errors or omissions.

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