Dear Governor Kotek and Director Williams — Waiver of the Maintenance of Effort (September 3, 2024)

Summary

On September 3, 2024 the Department of Education approves Oregon's March 14, 2024 request to waive the FY 2023 maintenance of effort requirements for elementary and secondary and for higher education, in a letter to Governor Tina Kotek and Director Charlene Williams. Oregon missed the elementary and secondary requirement by 4.53 percentage points, or $621.2 million, and the higher education requirement by 0.68 percentage point, or $28.1 million. The Department notes support rose from an average of $4,064,163,411 to $5,489,898,483 and per-pupil spending rose 42 percent, and that $900 million for schools and $318.9 million for higher education appropriated for the 2023-2025 biennium exceed the shortfalls.

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“Dear Governor Kotek and Director Williams — Waiver of the Maintenance of Effort (September 3, 2024).” Original at www.ed.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/department-of-education-fy-2023-waiver-approved-www-ed-gov-22ebfe7a21-a542fe4a6a/, SHA-256 029ab0323d319a803e83ef33cc0c034d8419b8ff8960f3a6d6b4344bc595ddc8.

Full text

                             UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
                                  OFFICE OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION




                                                      September 3, 2024

The Honorable Tina Kotek
Governor of Oregon
900 Court Street, Suite 254
Salem, OR 97301

The Honorable Charlene Williams
Director
Oregon Department of Education
255 Capitol Street, NE
Salem, OR 97310

Dear Governor Kotek and Director Williams:

I am writing in response to the Oregon Department of Education’s March 14, 2024, request to
the U.S. Department of Education (Department) for a waiver of the fiscal year (FY) 2023
maintenance of effort (MOE) requirements under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP
Act).

As a condition of receiving Elementary and Secondary Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds under
the ARP Act, Oregon assured it would maintain effort, as defined in the ARP Act, for both
elementary and secondary education and higher education in each of FYs 2022 and 2023. More
specifically, for each FY, section 2004(a)(1) of the ARP Act requires a State that receives ARP
ESSER funds to maintain State support for: 1) elementary and secondary education at least at the
proportional level of the State’s support for elementary and secondary education relative to the
State’s overall spending, averaged over FYs 2017, 2018, and 2019; and 2) higher education at
least at the proportional level of the State’s support for higher education relative to the State’s
overall spending, averaged over FYs 2017, 2018, and 2019. Section 2004(a)(2) of the ARP Act
allows the Department to grant a waiver of the MOE requirements “for the purpose of relieving
fiscal burdens incurred by States in preventing, preparing for, and responding to the
coronavirus.”

Under the authority of section 2004(a)(2) of the ARP Act, I am approving Oregon’s request to
waive the MOE requirements in section 2004(a)(1) of the ARP Act with respect to State support
for elementary and secondary education and higher education to relieve fiscal burdens incurred
by the State for FY 2023. This determination is based on the totality of the circumstances,
including review of Oregon’s waiver request and the fiscal burden the State incurred in
responding to the COVID-19 pandemic; the Department’s application of the statutory




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   The Department of Education’s mission is to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by
                               fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.
Page 2 – The Honorable Tina Kotek and Charlene Williams


requirements; the Department’s approach to MOE waiver requests as noted in the Frequently
Asked Questions document1; and consideration of the impact on students.
Based on the information submitted by Oregon, the State failed to meet the FY 2023 MOE
requirement for elementary and secondary education by 4.53 percentage points (a $621.2 million
shortfall) and for higher education by 0.68 percentage point (a $28.1 million shortfall). Oregon
noted that decreases in proportional education spending were due to increases in overall State
spending on health care, including Medicaid; mental and behavioral health; housing; and drought
relief.

In determining whether to grant a State an MOE waiver, we may consider factors such as
increased State support for education. Oregon submitted data showing it increased overall
support for elementary and secondary education from an average of $4,064,163,411 in the
baseline years to $5,489,898,483 in FY 2023. Data submitted by the State also show an increase
in overall support for higher education from an average of $815,197,137 in the baseline years to
$1,135,402,720 in FY 2023. Oregon also increased FY 2023 per-pupil spending compared to the
baseline for both elementary and secondary education (by 42 percent or $2,938 per student) and
higher education (by 43 percent or $4,341 per student). Finally, Oregon demonstrated a
commitment to State support for education beyond FY 2023 by appropriating $900 million in
supplemental funding for elementary and secondary education via the State School Fund and
$318.9 million for higher education in the FY 2023-2025 biennium. These supplemental
appropriations are larger than the FY 2023 shortfalls for both elementary and secondary and
higher education as calculated under the ARP Act MOE requirements.

Thank you for your ongoing commitment to education. If you have any questions, please contact
the Oregon State mailbox at Oregon.OESE@ed.gov.

                                                Sincerely,

                                                 Laura Jimenez

                                                Laura Jimenez
                                                Director, Office of State and Grantee Relations




1
 https://oese.ed.gov/files/2022/09/8.15.22-Update_MOE-Chart-with-waiver-FAQs-Rounding-and-Appendices-
Updated1.pdf

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