2016 Senate Bill 819

Overhaul Detroit school district debt and governance

Introduced in the Senate

Feb. 24, 2016

Introduced by Sen. Goeff Hansen (R-34)

To revise the state school funding formula to accommodate Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposal to split the Detroit school district into two entities, one to run the schools and the other to service the district’s debt (see Senate Bill 710 and House Bill 5384). The former, a reconstituted “community district,” would get the same amount of funding as the current district. It would get that amount despite the fact that in Detroit’s case money from local school millages – a component of the state aid formula - would be diverted to paying off the district’s debt. That means this bill is essentially the “bail out” provision of Governor’s proposal (which Republican bills in both the House and Senate accept).

Referred to the Committee on Government Operations

March 22, 2016

Passed in the Senate 21 to 16 (details)

To revise the state school funding formula to accommodate Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposal to bail out the Detroit school district by splitting it into two entities, one to run the schools and the other to service the district’s debt (see Senate Bill 710). The former would get the same amount of funding as the current Detroit district, even though the local school millage component of the state aid formula would be diverted to paying off the district’s debt. That effectively makes this bill the “bailout” provision of the proposal.

Received in the House

March 23, 2016

Referred to the Committee on Appropriations