The deadline to turn in Federal Impact Aid surveys is different for each district. EPISD forms are due at the end of November and parents must complete one for each student; it is not one per family. (Courtesy graphic)

Federal Impact Aid survey funds schools, teachers, activities; due soon

By Michelle L. Gordon, USAG Fort Bliss Public Affairs

Parents know the first few weeks of school are filled with forms to complete — emergency contacts, classroom helpers, health information, etc. Among the mountain of paperwork is the Federal Impact Aid survey — a short form with big monetary benefits — and the due date is drawing near.

Federal Impact Aid is financial assistance appropriated by Congress to assist school districts that have lost property tax revenue due to the presence of tax-exempt federal property, such as military installations like Fort Bliss, and other federal agencies. 

“It’s meant to offset the lost tax revenue because military families live on post, work on post and shop on post,” said Debbie Trexler, Fort Bliss Child and Youth Services program operations manager for youth and schools. 

“Not all students are funded at the same level,” Trexler said. “It depends on the answers to the survey. For instance, if a student lives on the installation and the parents work there, the district receives a higher percentage of impact aid than for a student who doesn’t live on the installation, but the parents work there.”

Funds are not allocated to an individual school, they are allocated to a school district. For Fort Bliss students, El Paso Independent School District is the biggest recipient and it receives the most Federal Impact Aid funding.

“Last year 95 percent of military-connected EPISD students turned in their forms and we were funded at 19 percent,” Trexler said. 

The funding percentage is determined by a formula based on how much the district is impacted by federally-connected kids. This includes not only military kids, but also those with parents who work on the installation, yet are not in the military, as well as families who live in low-income housing, and those who live on Indian lands.

Trexler said school districts use impact aid funding for a wide variety of expenses, including teacher salaries, purchasing textbooks, technology upgrades, after-school activities and tutoring, and special enrichment programs.

The deadline to turn in Federal Impact Aid surveys is different for each district. EPISD forms are due at the end of November and parents must complete one for each student; it is not one per family. 

Socorro and Ysleta independent school district surveys were due Nov. 8, but Trexler encourages families to send them back, even if the deadline has passed, because they can still be included. 

So far the EPISD survey completion rate for 2019 is much lower than previous years and Trexler believes it is because the district changed their distribution methodology. In an effort to be more environmentally-friendly, the initial surveys were distributed electronically this year.

“With change comes some challenges,” Trexler said. “The emails were going to spam folders, or parent emails weren’t updated — so in the coming days, schools will send home hard copies of the form to families on a targeted-basis, meaning, military families who have not yet completed the form online.”

In addition to the hard copies, EPISD parents can still access the electronic form online through the Parent Portal, located at https://www.episd.org/studentparentservices.

There are five EPISD schools located on federal property and they have the highest percentage of military-connected kids. Those are the schools Trexler would like to see with higher survey completion rates before the deadline at the end of November. They are: Powell Elementary, which had a 28 percent survey completion at press time, Milam Elementary with 21 percent, Logan Elementary with 19 percent, Bliss Elementary with 26 percent, and Chapin High School with 31 percent. 

Trexler added that Milam and Bliss should be near 100 percent, because they are located within the Fort Bliss cantonment area, meaning all of the students are federally-connected.

“We have the capability to ensure a better academic environment for our students, for more programs for our students, for resources for our students, and we are not taking advantage of that opportunity,” she said. “We are allowing this federally-funded program to not be funded because we are not turning in our Federal Impact Aid forms.”

Federal Impact Aid funds are not additional funds for the district, rather it replaces tax revenue the school districts lose because of where federally-connected families live, work and shop.

“We can make an impact,” said Trexler. “Let’s be good stewards and make a positive impact.”