Are Your Students Suffering Due to Budget Cuts? School Residency Checks Could Help

Your taxes pay for your children's public schools. Would it be fair for someone else to send their kids to school under a false residency status without paying for the expenses? How about your state college tuition? Do you think it should increase just because people who don't meet the state residency requirements evade the rules and don't pay the higher tuition they should?

These issues cause real strain on school budgets which leads to higher costs and a potential for decreased educational and extracurricular programs for you and your kids. How can it be stopped? Residency checks.

Why School Residency Requirements Matter
What's the big deal if out-of-district students attend your kids' public school because it's better than their own, or if college students take advantage of lower tuition rates than they're eligible for? Here are some of the possible repercussions:

• Local or state taxes will increase;
• Schools might cut funding for programs like art, music, or athletics.
• Class sizes might increase if schools can't afford current staff.
• State colleges might have to charge higher tuition.
• Community colleges might also increase tuition.

It all comes down to one thing - increased costs for the schools, which means increased costs for you!

How Schools Can Conduct Efficient Residency Checks

District, county, and state residency checks can be a cost-efficient option for weeding out students who are abusing the system. Schools can conduct database residency checks to help them identify any suspicious enrollments - where public records seem at odds with a family's or student's residency claim. When suspicious enrollments are identified, follow-up home visits can be conducted to verify the information.

These school residency checks help school districts, colleges, and universities reign in expenses associated with students who aren't eligible for their services. That helps to preserve lower tuition rates and student programs without increasing fees or local and state taxes.

Does your school conduct residency checks? Can you really afford not to?