Chapter 2 in a book on school law discusses the reasons for reduction in force (RIF) and presents a set of model regulations for school districts as the best means of minimizing legal problems resulting from RIF. The reasons for RIF include declining student enrollments; reduced turnover among teachers; changes in programs; and more constrained school budgets because of inflation, lower tax revenues, and unexpected elimination of federal or other funding. When employees must be terminated because of RIF, the school district will usually be faced with several types of legal problems. In dealing with these problems, regulations presented apply only to teachers, administrators, and other certified personnel; noncertified employees are excluded because most of them serve at the pleasure of the board or on short-term contracts. Some state statutes require the same procedure for a RIF as the tenure act requires for justifiable discharge. In such a situation, the statutory procedure, not this model, must be followed. (Author/MLF)