School-fee measure to get another shot

OGDEN, Utah (AP) — An Ogden legislator is bringing back her proposal to help reimburse school districts for the student activity fees waived for parents who cannot afford them.

Democratic Rep. LaWanna Lou Shurtliff sponsored a similar bill in the 2005 session. It was approved by the House but was not voted on by the Senate.

She believes the bill has a good chance of being approved in 2006.

"It's something people have had to learn about," she said. "Legislators are much more aware (of the financial impact of fee waivers)."

Shurtliff's bill calls for an ongoing $700,000 appropriation from Utah's Uniform School Fund to the state Board of Education to be disbursed to school districts impacted by fee waivers.

Districts would be reimbursed up to $40 for each student who receives a waiver.

The state's fee-waiver program has been in effect since 1985 and allows students from families in grades nine to 12 who are below the national poverty level to be exempt from paying fees for various extracurricular activities, such as athletics and music.

Although $700,000 would not be enough to offset all fee-waiver costs, the allocation would be a good start, Shurtliff said.