Publication Sneak Peek: Our Two Cents This segment features content from other AAEA publications. Our Two Cents (formerly the AAEA Publication) is a monthly publication available to districts on a subscription basis. The following excerpt comes from the February 2022 issue.
Did You Know? USDA Increases Funding For School Meals U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced an adjustment in school meal reimbursements to help schools continue to serve children healthy and nutritious meals. This change will put more funding into school meal programs this year. Click here for more information. SAM.gov - Transition from DUNS Number to Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) The Federal Government will transition from the use of the DUNS Number to the new Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) as the primary means of entity identification for the Federal awards government-wide, beginning April 4, 2022. If your organization is currently registered in SAM.gov with either an active or inactive registration, you have already been assigned a UEI. Your UEI is viewable on your entity’s registration record in SAM.gov. If you have any questions or concerns contact Bianca.Porter@ade.arkansas.gov or Mahoganey.Franklin@ade.arkansas.gov. Legislative Happenings The Fiscal Session started February 14, 2022. Several bills will be considered during the session regarding the State Employee and Public School Employee Health Insurance Plan - HB1097, HB1098, HB1099, HB1100, SB85, SB86, SB87, SB88. To see what is happening, visit the Arkansas State Legislature website. Dept of Finance & Administration Revenue Report - January 2022 Bolstered by better-than-expected individual income and sales and use tax collections, Arkansas' general revenue in January increased by $60 million over the same month a year ago to $782 million and beat the latest forecast by $174.4 million. Last month's increase in general revenue collection represented an 8.3% increase over collections in January 2021 and beat the level projected in the state's Dec. 16 forecast by 28.7%. In addition, the $782 million is a record for the month, beating the previous high of $722 million in January 2021. During the first seven months of FY22, total general revenue increased by $258.6 million, (5.9%), over the same period in fiscal 2021 and beat the Dec. 16 forecast by $231.2 million (5.2%). DF&A has previously noted that comparisons with year-ago collections are distorted by the shift of the individual income tax payment deadline in 2020 from April 15 to July 15 as a one-time change for pandemic relief efforts. This resulted in two-income tax filing dates in fiscal 2021. During last year's regular session, the General Assembly enacted a general revenue budget for FY22 totaling $5.84 billion, including a $17.1 million allocation to a restricted reserve fund. The forecast projects a $264.4 million surplus for FY22. Click here for the full report. Attorney General Opinions While Attorney General Opinion 2022-005 is not specifically related to education, it addresses the release of employee-related records as the result of a FOIA request. The AG opined that personal information such as salary and compensation, hire date, position titles, and employee names are subject to inspection and copying under FOIA. Additionally, the custodian correctly decided that certain sensitive personnel information was not releasable. The opinion also includes a discussion of “clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.” Click here for AG Opinion 2022-005. 2020/21 Annual Statistical Report DESE recently released the 2021-22 Annual Statistical Report. This annual comprehensive report includes information for each school district on ADM, millage rates, debt, revenue, expenditures, etc.
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