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CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) School districts across North Dakota were short changed according to Allan Odden who was hired by the legislature to prepare the school funding formula passed in the 2013 legislative session.

Past President of North Dakota School Superintendents Association Dean Koppelman says schools received $500 less per pupil last year and will be short another $350 this year according to Odden.

Koppelman says the Valley City school district lost about $800,000 due to the miscalculation. He says administrators and teachers across the state need to let their legislators know a correction should be put in place soon.

Allan Odden says the current $8,810 per student payment should have been $9,347. He says the amount now set at $9,092 should be recalibrated to $9,442 for this upcoming school year.

Koppelman says with the new funding formula school districts rely heavily on per pupil payments now that the local property tax mill levy was reduced to give taxpayers a property tax break following the 2013 legislative session.

According to a June 3 article in The Forum the North Dakota Interim legislative committee is studying adjustments to the state’s contribution.