Page 34 - AASBO EDGE Winter 2023

TRANSPORTATION

BY CHUCK ESSIGS
Per Pupil Transportation Funding

for Charter Schools
Chuck Essigs

This is a brief history on per pupil transportation to $274.13 for the 2021-2022 school year. This
funding for charter schools. When charter schools additional $274.12 was included in the 2021-2022
first started, they were under the same exact Charter Additional Assistance (CAA) formula of
pupil transportation formula as school districts. $1,897.90 for a K-8 student and $2,211.96 for a
However, some problems happened with a number 9-12 high school student.
of charter schools reimbursing parents to transport
their students to school and then claiming the Based upon the statewide student count of 220,838
miles driven by parents as contracted bus miles. for charter schools for 2021-22, charters received
This meant that many charter schools that were $60.5 million in transportation funding included in
reimbursing parents to drive students to school at Charter Additional Assistance during the 2021-22
the rate for a car were being paid by the state at school year.
the same per mile rate as was being paid for school
buses. This was legal, but certainly not how the Yes, funding for pupil transportation has been part
transportation funding formula was designed to of the charter funding formula since the 2000-
operate. 2001 school year, and is provided to every charter
school student. Since it is part of the CAA formula,
So, the Legislature wanted to establish a different it can be spent on pupil transportation or any other
formula for charter schools. The lawmakers expenses as determined by the charter school.
decided to fund charter schools at the average per
pupil amount that districts were spending on pupil Chuck Essigs is the Director of Government Relations with the
transportation. This was calculated by taking the Arizona Association of School Business Officials and can be
reached at: cessigs@aasbo.org
total amount that all school districts were spending
on pupil transportation and dividing that amount
by the total number of students attending district
schools. The average was $174 per student and
was paid for every student attending charter
schools whether they were transported or not. This
provision is still included in the charter school
funding formula.

The $174 per student was added to both the K-8
and 9-12 charter school funding formula. The
pupil transportation amount is still included in
the Charter Additional Assistance (CAA) total,
increased for inflation since 2000-2001. Inflation
increased the original $174 per pupil in 2000-2001

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34 THE EDGE WINTER 2022-2023