The matter could have serious consequences for Catholic education at a time when bets are placed on the opening of annexes far from the city center, in order to educate children with a more varied social profile. This Monday, September 16, the summary judge must rule on whether or not to suspend subsidies contested by the Communist Left, environmentalist and citizen group of the Île-de-France region. A first step before administrative justice decides on the merits of the case and validates, or not, the financial package proposed by private education to continue to develop.
The heart of the matter: the “Saint-Colomban” project, named after a private enterprise under contract, which must accommodate 1,500 students from kindergarten to high school, in Serris (Seine-et-Marne). The work, which would be delivered for the start of the 2023 school year, is well underway: “All that remains is the interior fittings to be carried out”, indicates Céline Malisé, the president of the group at the origin of the reference.
With other elected officials, she disputes the financial arrangement and the payment of 1.1 million euros of public money – which was voted by the region on 30 May 2024 – which should make it possible to build the enterprise, in contradiction, she believes, with the Falloux law. In total, with the department’s help, 3.5 million euros would be paid in public money, according to his calculations. “But the law is clear: the state must not finance the construction of new enterprises. It can only help up to 10% of the amount of annual operating expenses, and not 10% of the total work. she remembers.
“Too big to be an annex”
Céline Malisé also disputes that Saint-Colomban is a “appendix” from Rondeau High School, in Bussy-Saint-Georges, 8 km away. “The real estate project is far too big to be considered a simple annex. This is a new venture we’re talking about,” she reasoned.
The National Federation of Ogec, which brings together the management organizations of private Catholic institutions under contract (Fnogec), defends a completely different reading of the law and remembers that this type of arrangement is nothing new. According to Pierre-Vincent Guéret, the president, the opening of Saint-Colomban “was validated by Catholic education, but also by the rectorate who necessarily recognized the educational needs in Serris, a municipality in full development”, he began.
“Some confuse construction and legal realities”he continued. In this case, the term «appendix» refers to the legal personality of the business, not to the building itself. “Some also have multiple annexes, in several municipalities sometimes very far from each other,” he illustrates, with reference to the opening in 2021, in Meyzieu (Rhône) of an annex of the Marists, a well-known establishment in Lyon.
Calculation of the 10% limit
On the method of calculation, it defends itself above all against any violation of the principles of Falloux’s law. “If current regulations prohibit any public funding for schools, the Falloux Act allows it for middle and high schools. In this case, it allows subsidized loans, but also subsidizes up to 10% of the company’s annual costs. This includes not only operating expenses not covered by the association contract, but also equipment costs. Furthermore, these subsidies represent only a marginal part of the cost of the investment, which remains mainly the responsibility of families. »
Ultimately, which of these two readings will the administrative judge choose? “The Interacademic Council of National Education (CIEN), responsible for giving its opinion on award decisions, refused to decide between the two interpretations of the law.”let politics decide, recalls political scientist Philippe Portier. Since then, the prefects, responsible for the control of subsidies, regularly approve the calculation method most favorable to private education.
An effort of diversity
Justice, in turn, did not really decide either. After a decision of the State Council in 1990 remained vague, the then Minister of National Education, questioned by a deputy in session, again validated the reading of the Fnogec.
It nevertheless plays a major role if the judge, when deciding on the merits, were to change his analysis. Retaining a restrictive interpretation of the Falloux law will undermine any possibility of obtaining significant subsidies and will put an end to projects to open annexes, at the heart of the diversity effort particularly demanded by former minister Pap Ndiaye is, and which gave rise to a protocol between ministry and Catholic teaching signed in May 2023.
A prospect that Pierre-Vincent Guéret does not want to accept. “It must be remembered that even if it is significant, the amounts granted to us remain much lower than those advanced during the construction of a public enterprise. For the regions alone, the sum of our subsidies represents only 5.6% of the subsidies granted to public institutions. »