Wyo. Stat. § 21-13-309 (2026)

foundation program for each district.

    (a)   Repealed By Laws 1997 Special Session, ch. 3, § 304.

    (b)   Repealed By Laws 1997 Special Session, ch. 3, § 304.

    (c)   Repealed By Laws 1997 Special Session, ch. 3, § 304.

    (d)   Repealed By Laws 1997 Special Session, ch. 3, § 304.

    (e)   Repealed By Laws 1997 Special Session, ch. 3, § 304.

    (f)   Repealed By Laws 1997 Special Session, ch. 3, § 304.

    (g)   Repealed by Laws 1993, ch. 168, § 2.

    (h)   Repealed by Laws 1993, ch. 168, § 2.

    (j)   Repealed by Laws 1993, ch. 168, § 2.

    (k)   Repealed By Laws 1997 Special Session, ch. 3, § 304.

     (m) In determining the amount to be included in the
foundation program for each district, the state superintendent
shall:

          (i)    Repealed By Laws 2006, Chapter 37, § 2.

          (ii)    Repealed By Laws 2006, Chapter 37, § 2.

          (iii)   Repealed By Laws 2006, Chapter 37, § 2.

          (iv) Based upon reports from each district on schools
operating within that district for the current school year and
on grade configurations contained within each reported school
during that school year, compute the average daily membership
(ADM) for each reported school and each grade within each
reported school in accordance with identified grade
configurations subject to the following:

               (A) If the district's average ADM for the two
(2) immediately preceding school years is greater than the
district's ADM from the previous school year, each reported
school shall be computed based upon the average of the school's
ADM counts completed at the end of the two (2) immediately
preceding school years, otherwise each reported school within
the district shall be computed based on the school's ADM for the
previous school year;

               (B) For each school year, the configuration of
grades for each school shall be based upon the ADM reported for
each grade in which students were enrolled for the immediately
preceding school year;

              (C)   Repealed By Laws 2012, Ch. 99, § 2.

          (v) Based upon ADM computations and identified school
configurations within each district pursuant to paragraph (iv)
of this subsection, compute the foundation program amount for
each district as prescribed by the education resource block
grant model as defined under W.S. 21-13-101(a)(xiv). The
following criteria shall be used by the state superintendent in
the administration of the education resource block grant model:

               (A) At-risk students, for purposes of model
computations, shall include students within a school who are
eligible for participation in the free and reduced price lunch
program under the national school lunch program established by
42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq., who are identified as limited English
proficiency in accordance with rules and regulations of the
department of education or who are mobile students as defined by
department rule and regulation and enrolled in grades six (6)
through twelve (12) for the applicable school year. A student
shall be counted only once for purposes of computing school
at-risk student populations even though that student may
simultaneously be eligible to participate in the free and
reduced price lunch program, in programs serving students with
limited English proficiency or is defined as a mobile student;

               (B) Alternative schools may be established by a
school district for offering educational programs to students
with educational needs which the district finds are not
appropriately met by other schools in the district, excluding
charter schools established under W.S. 21-3-301 through 21-3-
314. Alternative schools included within a district's
configuration of schools identified under paragraph (iv) of this
subsection shall for purposes of the education resource block
grant model:

                    (I)    Repealed by Laws 2026, ch. 82, § 3.

                    (II)   Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 147, § 102.
                    (III) Unless otherwise authorized by the
state superintendent, be restricted to not more than one (1)
alternative school within any school district;

                    (IV) Be approved as an alternative school
by the state superintendent subject to the following:

                         (1) Completion of a formal evaluation
of the school district's at-risk programs to ensure provision of
a continuum of learning supports and classroom interventions
addressing the needs of at-risk children within the district
which is comprised of the following:

                              a. Criteria for identifying
at-risk students in accordance with and subject to
research-based indicators;

                              b. Use of individual learning
plans for each identified at-risk student or an equivalent
school-wide plan that defines interventions, programs and
services required to address special needs. The plans shall be
continuously monitored by the district;

                              c. Use of quality learning
supports and classroom interventions based upon the special
needs of the student population served by the district and the
supports and interventions are supported by and based upon
research-based practices and strategies;

                              d. Data based predictors to
identify students at-risk of dropping out of school after
reaching the age of compulsory attendance pursuant to W.S.
21-4-102 and learning supports and classroom strategies to
address this student population.

                         (2) A formal evaluation is conducted
by the district not less than once every two (2) years of the
school's programs, comprised of the continuum of learning
supports and classroom interventions specified under subdivision
(IV)(1) of this subparagraph. The evaluation shall measure the
effectiveness of the school's programs in meeting the needs of
those student populations attending the school. Formal
evaluations conducted under this subparagraph shall be reported
to and approved by the district board and reported to the state
superintendent together with action plans addressing necessary
program improvements;
                         (3) Student achievement within the
school is reported annually by the district to the state
superintendent, as measured by quality indicators specified by
rule and regulation of the department which reflect the
components of the continuum of learning supports and classroom
interventions specified under subdivision (IV)(1) of this
subparagraph;

                         (4) Educational space for the school
is provided through facilities operated and maintained by the
district and approved by the state construction department as
meeting statewide adequacy standards. After two (2) evaluations
by the state superintendent under subdivision (IV)(3) of this
subparagraph that demonstrate academic progress or success of an
alternative school's educational program, the alternative school
shall be included in the district's five (5) year plan under
W.S. 21-15-116 and the school's long-term facility needs shall
be evaluated by the state construction department.
Notwithstanding subparagraph (m)(vi)(C) of this section, the
state construction department shall not approve any district
plan which includes educational space for the alternative school
within a separate facility unless the district provides
sufficient documentation and evidence that the school cannot be
collocated within a facility containing educational space for
another school with similar grade configurations operated by the
district.

                    (V)   Repealed by Laws 2026, ch. 82, § 3.

              (C)   Repealed by Laws 2026, ch. 82, § 3.

               (D) Career and technical education computations
within the education resource block grant model shall be based
upon:

                    (I) The number of students enrolled in
grades nine (9) through twelve (12) participating in career and
technical education programs on a full-time equivalency (FTE)
basis, as computed in accordance with guidelines established by
the department of education;

                    (II) Career and technical education
programs offered in grades nine (9) through twelve (12)
consisting of a sequence of three (3) or more career and
technical courses in an occupational area or career cluster that
provides students with the technical knowledge, skills or
proficiencies necessary to obtain employment in current or
emerging occupations or to pursue advanced skill training. To
qualify under this subdivision, a career and technical course
shall be offered pursuant to W.S. 21-9-101(b)(i)(J) and aligned
with state content and performance standards prescribed by the
state board of education under W.S. 21-2-304(a)(iii), and except
as provided under W.S. 21-2-202(a)(xxvii), shall be provided by
a teacher certified by the Wyoming professional teaching
standards board for the career and technical subject area
associated with the course;

                    (III)   Repealed by Laws 2025, ch. 108, § 4.

               (E) Amounts computed under the education
resource block grant model for each school district based upon
amounts generated by each school within the district and based
upon amounts generated at the district level for that district
within the block grant model, shall be adjusted by adding the
following amounts:

                    (I) An amount for district transportation
of school children as provided under W.S. 21-13-320;

                    (II)    Repealed by Laws 2023, ch. 111, § 2.

                    (III) An amount for any extra compensation
payments to district teachers as provided under W.S. 21-13-324;

                    (IV) An amount for any isolation and
maintenance payments by the district as provided under W.S.
21-4-401;

                    (V) An amount for any tuition and
maintenance payments made by the district pursuant to W.S.
21-4-501(d) and 21-4-504.

               (F) Amounts provided within the model for health
insurance shall be based upon:

                    (I) The actual participants, for each month
of the prior year, of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees
funded with amounts allocated from the education resource block
grant model in district health insurance plans categorized into
employee only, split contracts, employee plus spouse, employee
plus children and family coverage. Each FTE reported under this
subdivision shall be adjusted by the department of education to
reflect eligible participation in the state group health
insurance plan and proportional contribution percentages. For
any FTE reported under this subdivision funded from the
education resource block grant model and any other source of
funds, a proportional share of the FTE shall be used for
purposes of this subparagraph;

                    (II) Each reported employee under
subdivision (I) of this subparagraph shall be multiplied by the
annualized state contribution rate as of January 1 of the
preceding school year, on behalf of each employee and official
enrolled in the state group health insurance plan, for employee
only, split contracts, employee plus spouse, employee plus
children and family coverage except as provided in subdivision
(IV) of this subparagraph; and

                    (III)   Repealed by Laws 2026, ch. 82, § 3.

                    (IV) For school year 2027-2028 and each
school year thereafter, the amount provided to school districts
for health insurance shall be computed as follows:

                         (1) The amount calculated pursuant to
subdivision (II) of this subparagraph, subject to subdivision
(2) of this subdivision;

                         (2) If the actual prior school year
health insurance expenditures for employees funded with amounts
allocated from the education resource block grant model is less
than the amount calculated under subdivision (II) of this
subparagraph for that school year, the difference shall be
subtracted from the amount calculated pursuant to subdivision
(II) of this subparagraph.

               (G) Amounts within the education resource block
grant model for maintenance and operations shall be based upon
the lesser of the actual educational gross square footage of
school buildings and facilities or the education space
prescribed by statewide adequacy standards under W.S. 21-15-115
subject to the following:

                    (I) Actual gross square footage of school
buildings and facilities shall be separated into education space
categories by school and by district, including leased square
footage but excluding square footage not used for delivering the
required educational program and the square footage of any
building or facility closed and not operational as provided
under W.S. 21-15-109(c)(iv);
                    (II) Actual gross square footage of
education space shall be the gross square footage prescribed by
statewide building adequacy standards promulgated pursuant to
W.S. 21-15-115. Education space capacity in excess of one
hundred fifteen percent (115%) of the standard space level shall
not be included in actual gross square footage computations
under this subdivision.

                    (III)   Repealed by Laws 2026, ch. 82, § 3.

          (vi) Except for charter schools established under
W.S. 21-3-301 through 21-3-314 and alternative schools approved
under subdivision (v)(B)(IV) of this subsection, any alteration
of the configuration of grades within a district, school or
school facility which differs from the configuration of grades
during the immediately preceding school year as reported under
paragraph (iv) of this subsection shall be considered a
reconfiguration and shall be documented by the district and
reported to the state superintendent and the director of the
state construction department. Following review and evaluation,
the state superintendent and the director of the state
construction department shall, each acting independently,
approve or deny the reconfiguration for purposes of application
to the education resource block grant model and the
determination of school facility needs and remedies. The
following shall apply:

               (A) Approval under this paragraph shall be based
upon the appropriate delivery of the required educational
program, the cost effectiveness of the proposed grade
reconfiguration for delivery of adequate educational services to
students with block grant resources, district wide capacity of
school educational facilities as defined under W.S.
21-15-109(a)(ii) and any extraordinary circumstances related to
the safe and efficient delivery of the education program to
students;

               (B) Approval under this paragraph shall be
required prior to receiving state funds for adding any new
school within a district;

               (C) No reconfiguration of grades within any
district, school or facility shall differ from the previous
school year such that more than one (1) school is included
within any one (1) school facility to be reported under
paragraph (iv) of this subsection for purposes of determining
the foundation program amount for that district;
               (D) As used in this paragraph, "configuration"
means the approved combination of grades served within a
district, school or school facility as reported for purposes of
determining the foundation program amount for that district
under this section.

     (n)   Repealed By Laws 2002, Chapter 76, § 3; 2006, Chapter
37, § 2.

     (o) To the extent specifically provided by the
legislature, and between periods of model recalibration required
under subsection (t) of this section, the amount computed for
each district under subsection (m) of this section shall be
adjusted to provide for the effects of inflation, excluding
those amounts specified under subparagraphs (m)(v)(E) and (F) of
this section, the technology and equipment component as
specified in W.S. 21-13-309.1(c)(xxii), the gifted and talented
students component as specified in W.S. 21-13-309.1(c)(xxiii)
and the short cycle and formative assessment component as
specified in W.S. 21-13-309.1(c)(xxvi). The adjustment under
this subsection shall not be applied until the expiration of the
school year immediately following the first school year of
application of the recalibrated model, and shall be adjusted on
a cumulative basis each school year thereafter and until the
first school year of application of a subsequent model
recalibration. Following analysis of information reported under
subsection (u) of this section, the joint appropriations
committee shall submit a recommendation to the legislature and
the governor not later than November 1 of each applicable year
on an external cost adjustment for purposes of this subsection.

     (p) Except as otherwise provided by law and following the
computation and application of any adjustment under subsection
(o) of this section, the amount computed for each school within
each district shall be combined with the amount computed and
provided on a district level for that district, as prescribed
by the education resource block grant model, to determine the
foundation program amount for each district.

    (q)    Repealed By Laws 2006, Chapter 37, § 2.

    (r)    Repealed By Laws 2006, Chapter 37, § 2.

    (s)    Repealed By Laws 2006, Chapter 37, § 2.
     (t) Not less than once every five (5) years, the
legislature shall provide for the recalibration of the education
resource block grant model to determine if modifications are
necessary to ensure it remains cost-based in light of changing
conditions and modifications to law.

     (u) To ensure model components specified under the
education resource block grant model defined under W.S. 21-13-
101(a)(xiv), as enumerated and enacted by the legislature and as
specified by W.S. 21-13-309.1, remain resourced at cost-based
levels between periods of model recalibration required under
subsection (t) of this section, and prior to adjustment for the
effects of inflation for any school year under subsection (o) of
this section, the joint education interim committee shall
annually receive and review reports in accordance with this
subsection and report to the joint appropriations committee as
required by this subsection. The legislative service office
shall assemble information necessary to develop a model
monitoring process and other reports for the committee using
data maintained by the department of education and other state
agencies. For this purpose, the department shall annually
update and compile information, in a format contained within
reports provided during 2025 model recalibration, reported at
the model component level, on school district allocation of
model resources, as well as other information provided for
purposes of developing and completing the 2025 cost of education
studies. Each year excluding the first school year of
application of any model recalibration performed under
subsection (t) of this section, the information and analysis
assembled by the legislative service office under this
subsection shall be reported to the joint education interim
committee in sufficient time to allow committee review of and
deliberation on the report and the submission of recommendations
to the joint appropriations committee by October 15 of the
applicable school year. Report recommendations shall be used by
the joint appropriations committee in its determination of
legislative recommendation on model adjustment under subsection
(o) of this section.