(a) When any child between school entry age and twenty-one (21) years of age and resident in this Commonwealth, who is blind or deaf, or has cerebral palsy and/or neurological impairment and/or muscular dystrophy and/or is intellectually disabled and/or has a serious emotional disability and/or has autism/pervasive developmental disorder and is enrolled, with the approval of the Department of Education, as a pupil in an approved private school approved by the Department of Education, in accordance with standards and regulations promulgated by the State Board of Education, the school district in which such child is resident or, for students placed by a charter school, the charter school in which the student was enrolled shall pay the greater of either twenty per centum (20%) of the actual audited cost of tuition and maintenance of such child in such school, as determined by the Department of Education, or its “tuition charge per elementary pupil” or its “tuition charge per high school pupil,” as calculated pursuant to section 2561,¹ and the Commonwealth shall pay, out of funds appropriated to the department for special education, the balance due for the costs of such child's tuition and maintenance, as determined by the department. For the school years 1989-1990, 1990-1991 and 1991-1992, the school district payment shall be no greater than forty percent (40%) of the actual audited costs of tuition and maintenance of such child in such school. For the 1992-1993 school year through the 2003-2004 school year, the school district or charter school payment shall be the greater of forty percent (40%) of the actual audited costs of tuition and maintenance of such child in such school, as determined by the Department of Education, or its “tuition charge per elementary pupil” or its “tuition charge per high school pupil,” as calculated pursuant to section 2561, and the Commonwealth shall pay, out of funds appropriated to the department for approved private schools, the balance due for the costs of such child's tuition and maintenance, as determined by the department. For the 2004-2005 school year and each school year thereafter, the school district or charter school payment shall be the greater of forty percent (40%) of the approved tuition rate as established pursuant to subsection (c.3) or (c.5) or the school district or charter school's “tuition charges per elementary pupil” or “tuition charges per secondary pupil” as calculated under section 2561, and the Commonwealth shall pay out of funds appropriated to the department for approved private schools the balance of the approved tuition rate due for the cost of such child's tuition and maintenance. The department will credit the district of residence with average daily membership for such child consistent with the rules of procedure developed in accordance with section 2501.² If the residence of such child in a particular school district cannot be determined, the Commonwealth shall pay the whole cost of tuition and maintenance of such child as established under subsection (c.3) or (c.5).

(a.1) For the 2004-2005 school year, the following shall apply:

(a.2) For the 2005-2006 school year and each school year thereafter, the Department of Education shall determine the payment amount for each approved private school for all students enrolled in an approved private school for the prior school year as follows:

(b) When any person less than school entry age or more than twenty-one (21) years of age and resident in this Commonwealth, who is blind or deaf, or has cerebral palsy and/or has neurological impairment and/or has muscular dystrophy, or has autism/pervasive developmental delay, and is enrolled, with the approval of the Department of Education, as a pupil in an approved private school approved by the Department of Education, the Commonwealth shall pay to such school the approved tuition rate for such child's tuition and maintenance, and in addition, in the case of any child less than school entry age, who is blind, the cost, as determined by the Department of Education of instructing the parent of such blind child in caring for such child.

(b.1) Deleted by 2004, July 4, P.L. 536, No. 70, § 10, imd. effective.

(c) Deleted by 2003, Dec. 23, P.L. 304, No. 48, § 11, imd. effective.

(c.1) Deleted by 2011, June 30, P.L. 112, No. 24, § 19, effective July 1, 2011.

(c.3) For payments made during the 2004-2005 school year, the Department of Education shall establish an approved tuition rate for each approved private school by dividing the amount calculated under subsection (a.1) by the full-time equivalent enrollment for the approved private school for the 2003-2004 school year. This calculation shall be adjusted for residential and non-residential students. The approved tuition rate multiplied by the full-time equivalent enrollment shall not exceed the amount calculated under subsection (a.1).

(c.4) Beginning August 15, 2004, and no later than August 15 of each year thereafter, each approved private school shall submit budget information for the current school year on forms and in a manner determined by the Department of Education. The budget information shall include a proposed tuition rate or rates and projected full-time equivalent enrollment for the current year. An approved private school may submit separate proposed tuition rates for up to three levels of services and for day and residential students, pursuant to the guidelines established under subsection (c.7).

(c.5) For payments made during the 2005-2006 school year and each school year thereafter, beginning January 15, 2005, and no later than January 15 of each year thereafter, the Department of Education shall establish an approved tuition rate or rates and full-time equivalent enrollment for each approved private school for the current school year. Where an approved private school has submitted one tuition rate, the approved tuition rate shall be determined by dividing the amount calculated under subsection (a.2) by the full-time equivalent enrollment for the approved private school for the prior school year. Where an approved private school has submitted more than one tuition rate, the sum of the products of each approved tuition rate and corresponding full-time equivalent enrollment for the approved private school for the prior school year shall equal the amount calculated under subsection (a.2). An approved private school may enroll students in excess of the approved full-time equivalent enrollment. Where an approved private school enrolls students in excess of the approved full-time equivalent enrollment, it must show a corresponding decrease in its approved tuition rate.

(c.6) No later than May 1, 2005, and May 1 of each school year thereafter, the department shall annually publish a report on the department's publicly accessible World Wide Web site that shall include, but not be limited to:

(c.7) No later than November 1, 2004, the Department of Education shall issue guidelines establishing the levels of services to assist each approved private school in determining its proposed tuition rate or rates. The guidelines shall allow an approved private school to establish approved tuition rates for up to three levels of services and for day and residential students.

(c.8) Within sixty (60) days of the effective date of this subsection, the Department of Education shall promulgate interim standards necessary to implement subsection (c.2) which shall be published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin. The interim standards shall not be subject to review pursuant to the act of June 25, 1982 (P.L. 633, No. 181),³ known as the “Regulatory Review Act,” and shall not be subject to sections 201 through 205 of the act of July 31, 1968 (P.L. 769, No. 240),⁴ referred to as the Commonwealth Documents Law. The interim standards shall apply to audits conducted after July 1, 2005. Within one year of publication of the interim standards in the Pennsylvania Bulletin, the Department of Education shall deposit proposed standards. The interim standards shall remain in effect until the effective date of the final standards.

(c.9) Beginning with audited data for the 2016-2017 school year, the total of the amounts remitted to the Commonwealth under subsection (c.2)(5)(ii) shall be distributed to each approved private school with reportable costs that exceed the amount of revenue received as follows:

(d) No private institution receiving payment in accordance with this section shall impose any charge on the student and/or parents who are Pennsylvania approved reimbursable residents for a program of individualized instruction and maintenance appropriate to the child's needs; except that charges for services not part of such program may be made if agreed to by the parents.

(e) The following words and phrases as used in this section shall have the meanings given to them in this subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

“Approved full-time equivalent enrollment” means the full-time equivalent enrollment set by the Department of Education pursuant to the provisions of subsection (c.3) or (c.5).

“Approved tuition rate” means the final tuition rate set by the Department of Education pursuant to the provisions of subsection (c.3) or (c.5).

“Audit,” for the purpose of subsection (a.1), means the fiscal audit issued by the Governor's Office of the Budget, excluding questioned costs.

“Claim form,” for the purpose of subsection (a.1), means the form that each approved private school submitted following the end of the fiscal year showing the final costs claimed for the fiscal year.

“Current school year” means the year in which payment is being made.

“Full-time equivalent enrollment” means the number of students enrolled in an approved private school pursuant to subsection (a) or (b).

“Independent certified public accountant” means a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants that has a minimum of five (5) years' verifiable experience in performing audits of government funds for nonprofit organizations with a comparable or larger annual budget.

“Midyear budget,” for the purpose of subsection (a.1), means the adjusted budget for the 2003-2004 school year submitted by each approved private school in January 2004.

“Preliminary budget,” for the purpose of subsection (a.1), means the budget for the 2004-2005 school year submitted by each approved private school in June 2004.

“Prior school year” means the year for which payment is made during the current year.

“Proposed tuition rate” means the amount submitted by each approved private school to the Department of Education to be used in establishing the cost that the approved private school incurred to provide instructional and residential services for each full-time equivalent student. An approved private school may submit information to establish costs for up to three (3) levels of services and for day and residential students.