Education

Administration

Rule 445: Classifying Small Schools as Necessarily Existent

Effective Date: 10/08/2026

Admin. Code Reference: R277-445

Rule Type: Current Rule

NOTICE OF SUBSTANTIVE CHANGE

TYPE OF FILING: Amendment

Filing ID: 58160

Rule or section number:

R277-445

1. Agency Information

Title catchline:

Education, Administration

Building:

Board of Education

Street address:

250 E 500 S

City, state:

Salt Lake City, UT

Mailing address:

PO Box 144200

City, state and zip:

Salt Lake City, UT 84114-4200

2. Contact Persons

Name:

Phone:

Email:

Elisse Newey

801-538-7500

Elisse.newey@schools.utah.gov

Please address questions regarding information on this notice to the persons listed above.

3. General Information

A. Rule or section catchline:

R277-445. Classifying Small Schools as Necessarily Existent

B. Purpose of the new rule or reason for the change:

These rule amendments are needed to remove the oversight category.

C. Summary of the new rule or change:

The amendments remove the oversight categorization of "Category 4".

5. Fiscal Information

Provide an estimate and written explanation of the aggregate anticipated cost or savings to:

A. State budget:

This amendment is not expected to have fiscal impact on state government revenues or expenditures.

The amendment is to strike the outdated internal oversight category reference and does not have costs or savings for the Utah State Board of Education (USBE), Local Education Agencies (LEAs), or any other persons or entities.

B. Local governments:

This amendment is not expected to have fiscal impact on local governments' revenues or expenditures.

The amendment is to strike the outdated internal oversight category reference and does not have costs or savings for the USBE, LEAs, or any other persons or entities.

C. Small businesses ("small business" means a business employing 1-49 persons):

This amendment is not expected to have fiscal impact on small businesses' revenues or expenditures.

The amendment is to strike the outdated internal oversight category reference and does not have costs or savings for the USBE, LEAs, or any other persons or entities.

D. Non-small businesses ("non-small business" means a business employing 50 or more persons):

There are no non-small businesses in the industry in question, Elementary and Secondary Schools (North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) 611110). Because there are no non-small businesses, they do not account for any service delivery for Elementary and Secondary Schools. Therefore, non-small businesses are not expected to receive increased or decreased revenues per year. This proposed rule change is not expected to have any fiscal impact on non-small businesses' revenues or expenditures because there are no applicable non-small businesses, and it does not require any expenditures of, or generate revenue for non-small businesses.

E. Persons other than small businesses, non-small businesses, state, or local government entities ("person" means any individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental entity, or public or private organization of any character other than an agency):

This amendment is not expected to have fiscal impact on revenues or expenditures for persons other than small businesses, businesses, or local government entities.

The amendment is to strike the outdated internal oversight category reference and does not have costs or savings for the USBE, LEAs, or any other persons or entities.

F. Compliance costs for affected persons:

There are no compliance costs for affected persons.

The change is to strike the outdated internal oversight category reference and does not have costs or savings for the USBE, LEAs, or any other persons or entities.

6. Regulatory Impact Summary Table

Enter the cost or savings in the relevant cell. If there is no cost or savings, enter, "$0." If a cost or savings is inestimable, enter, "inestimable."

Fiscal Cost

FY2027

FY2028

FY2029

FY2030

FY2031

State Budget

Local Governments

Small Businesses

Non-Small Businesses

Other Persons

Total Fiscal Cost

Fiscal Benefits

FY2027

FY2028

FY2029

FY2030

FY2031

State Budget

Local Governments

Small Businesses

Non-Small Businesses

Other Persons

Total Fiscal Benefits

Net Fiscal Benefits

7. Regulatory Impact Analysis Approval

The State Superintendent of the Utah State Board of Education, Molly Hart, has reviewed and approved this regulatory impact analysis.

8. Family Impact Information

A. The agency has considered this rule's impact on family health, stability, and formation:

☒

9. Citation Information

Provide citations to the statutory authority for the rule. If there is also a federal requirement for the rule, provide a citation to that requirement:

Utah Constitution, Article X, Section 3

Subsection 53E-3-401(4)

Subsection 53F-2-304(1)

11. Public Notice Information

The public may submit written or oral comments to the agency identified in box 1.

A. Comments will be accepted until:

10/01/2026

12. Effective Date Information

This rule change MAY become effective on:

(NOTE: This is the date the agency anticipates making the filing effective. It is NOT the effective date)

10/08/2026

13. Agency Authorization Information

Agency head or

designee and title:

Elisse Newey, Deputy Superintendent of

Policy

Date:

08/14/2026

R277. Education, Administration.

R277-445. Classifying Small Schools as Necessarily Existent.

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

[(1) ]This rule is authorized by:

[(a)](1) Article X, Section 3 of the Utah Constitution, which vests general control and supervision over public education in the Board;

[(b)](2) 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)](3) 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 R277-445 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]before 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

(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 17, 2025]2026

Notice of Continuation: August 19, 2021

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

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