Rock Hill schools, Catawba Indians negotiating unpaid tuition bill

The Catawba Indian Nation and the Rock Hill school district are negotiating over the terms of an unpaid tuition bill that could range from $2.7 million to as much as $4 million.

The Rock Hill school board authorized the negotiations this week.

Charging children who live on the Catawba Indian Reservation out-of-district tuition rates was a late addition to the 1993 settlement the tribe negotiated over land claims with the federal and state governments.

The payment was to compensate the school district for lost taxes when tribal land was removed from property tax liability.

The tribe has disputed the provision but has twice lost legal challenges which made it to the S.C. Supreme Court.

Initially, it was thought the tribe would qualify for federal funding to pay the tuition. But the number of Catawba Indian children attending Rock Hill schools did not meet the threshold for federal reimbursement. About 280 children who live on the reservation attend Rock Hill schools.

The current tuition rate is $4,195 per pupil.

Jim Vining, chairman of the Rock Hill school board, said the board’s actions “protect our interests.” The school system has a court judgment against the Catawbas, ordering them to pay the tuition.

Catawba Indian Chief Bill Harris said the tribe approached the school board about the outstanding debt. The tribe, Harris said, “wants to make sure the amount is accurate.”

According to the school district, the unpaid tuition totals $2.7 million and the total amount is about $4 million when interest is added.

The tribe has paid the school district $422,082 for tuition but hasn’t made a payment since 1994. The school district stopped charging tuition in 2006 when the state Legislature passed Act 388 which removed the school funding burden from residential property owners and placed it on shoppers and business owners via a 1-cent sales tax.

Vining said the school stopped charging tuition on the advice of its attorney that to continue the tuition after Act 388 “wouldn’t hold up in court.”

This story was originally published April 16, 2015 at 6:11 PM with the headline "Rock Hill schools, Catawba Indians negotiating unpaid tuition bill."