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The Florida Senate

2009 Florida Statutes

Section 1009.22, Florida Statutes 2009

1009.22  Workforce education postsecondary student fees.--

(1)  This section applies to students enrolled in workforce education programs who are reported for funding, except that college credit fees for the community colleges are governed by s. 1009.23

(2)  All students shall be charged fees except students who are exempt from fees or students whose fees are waived.

(3)(a)  Except as otherwise provided by law, fees for students who are nonresidents for tuition purposes must offset the full cost of instruction. Fee-nonexempt students enrolled in vocational-preparatory instruction shall be charged fees equal to the fees charged for certificate career education instruction. Each community college that conducts college-preparatory and vocational-preparatory instruction in the same class section may charge a single fee for both types of instruction.

(b)  Fees for continuing workforce education shall be locally determined by the district school board or community college board. However, at least 50 percent of the expenditures for the continuing workforce education program provided by the community college or school district must be derived from fees.

(c)  Effective January 1, 2008, standard tuition shall be $1.67 per contact hour for programs leading to a career certificate or an applied technology diploma and 83 cents for adult general education programs. The out-of-state fee per contact hour shall be three times the standard tuition per contact hour.

(d)  Beginning with the 2008-2009 fiscal year and each year thereafter, the tuition and the out-of-state fee per contact hour shall increase at the beginning of each fall semester at a rate equal to inflation, unless otherwise provided in the General Appropriations Act. The Office of Economic and Demographic Research shall report the rate of inflation to the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Governor, and the State Board of Education each year prior to March 1. For purposes of this paragraph, the rate of inflation shall be defined as the rate of the 12-month percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, U.S. City Average, All Items, or successor reports as reported by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, or its successor for December of the previous year. In the event the percentage change is negative, the tuition and out-of-state fee shall remain at the same level as the prior fiscal year.

(e)  Each district school board and each community college board of trustees may adopt tuition and out-of-state fees that may vary no more than 5 percent below and 5 percent above the combined total of the standard tuition and out-of-state fees established in paragraph (c).

(f)  The maximum increase in resident tuition for any school district or community college during the 2007-2008 fiscal year shall be 5 percent over the tuition charged during the 2006-2007 fiscal year.

(g)  The State Board of Education shall adopt, by rule, the definitions and procedures that district school boards and community college boards of trustees shall use in the calculation of cost borne by students.

(4)  A district school board or community college board that has a service area that borders another state may implement a plan for a differential out-of-state fee.

(5)  Each district school board and community college board of trustees may establish a separate fee for financial aid purposes in an additional amount of up to 10 percent of the student fees collected for workforce education programs. All fees collected shall be deposited into a separate workforce education student financial aid fee trust fund of the school district or community college to support students enrolled in workforce education programs. Any undisbursed balance remaining in the trust fund and interest income accruing to investments from the trust fund shall increase the total funds available for distribution to workforce education students. Awards shall be based on student financial need and distributed in accordance with a nationally recognized system of need analysis approved by the State Board of Education. Fees collected pursuant to this subsection shall be allocated in an expeditious manner.

(6)(a)  Each district school board and community college board of trustees may establish a separate fee for capital improvements, technology enhancements, or equipping buildings which may not exceed 5 percent of tuition for resident students or 5 percent of tuition and out-of-state fees for nonresident students. Funds collected by community colleges through the fee may be bonded only for the purpose of financing or refinancing new construction and equipment, renovation, or remodeling of educational facilities. The fee shall be collected as a component part of the tuition and fees, paid into a separate account, and expended only to construct and equip, maintain, improve, or enhance the certificate career education or adult education facilities of the school district or community college. Projects funded through the use of the capital improvement fee must meet the survey and construction requirements of chapter 1013. Pursuant to s. 216.0158, each district school board and community college board of trustees shall identify each project, including maintenance projects, proposed to be funded in whole or in part by such fee. Capital improvement fee revenues may be pledged by a board of trustees as a dedicated revenue source to the repayment of debt, including lease-purchase agreements, with an overall term of not more than 7 years, including renewals, extensions, and refundings, and revenue bonds with a term not exceeding 20 years and not exceeding the useful life of the asset being financed, only for the new construction and equipment, renovation, or remodeling of educational facilities. Bonds authorized pursuant to this paragraph shall be requested by the community college board of trustees and shall be issued by the Division of Bond Finance in compliance with s. 11(d), Art. VII of the State Constitution and the State Bond Act. The Division of Bond Finance may pledge fees collected by one or more community colleges to secure such bonds. Any project included in the approved educational plant survey pursuant to chapter 1013 is approved pursuant to s. 11(f), Art. VII of the State Constitution. Bonds issued pursuant to the State Bond Act may be validated in the manner provided by chapter 75. The complaint for such validation shall be filed in the circuit court of the county where the seat of state government is situated, the notice required to be published by s. 75.06 shall be published only in the county where the complaint is filed, and the complaint and order of the circuit court shall be served only on the state attorney of the circuit in which the action is pending. A maximum of 15 cents per credit hour may be allocated from the capital improvement fee for child care centers conducted by the district school board or community college board of trustees. The use of capital improvement fees for such purpose shall be subordinate to the payment of any bonds secured by the fees.

(b)  The state does hereby covenant with the holders of the bonds issued under paragraph (a) that it will not take any action that will materially and adversely affect the rights of such holders so long as the bonds authorized by paragraph (a) are outstanding.

(7)  Each district school board and community college board of trustees is authorized to establish a separate fee for technology, not to exceed 5 percent of tuition per credit hour or credit-hour equivalent for resident students and not to exceed 5 percent of tuition and the out-of-state fee per credit hour or credit-hour equivalent for nonresident students. Revenues generated from the technology fee shall be used to enhance instructional technology resources for students and faculty and shall not be included in any award under the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program. Fifty percent of technology fee revenues may be pledged by a community college board of trustees as a dedicated revenue source for the repayment of debt, including lease-purchase agreements, not to exceed the useful life of the asset being financed. Revenues generated from the technology fee may not be bonded.

(8)  Each district school board and community college board of trustees is authorized to establish specific fees for workforce development instruction not reported for state funding purposes or for workforce development instruction not reported as state funded full-time equivalent students. District school boards and community college boards of trustees are not required to charge any other fee specified in this section for this type of instruction.

(9)  Community college boards of trustees and district school boards are not authorized to charge students enrolled in workforce development programs any fee that is not specifically authorized by statute. In addition to tuition, out-of-state, financial aid, capital improvement, and technology fees, as authorized in this section, community college boards of trustees and district school boards are authorized to establish fee schedules for the following user fees and fines: laboratory fees; parking fees and fines; library fees and fines; fees and fines relating to facilities and equipment use or damage; access or identification card fees; duplicating, photocopying, binding, or microfilming fees; standardized testing fees; diploma replacement fees; transcript fees; application fees; graduation fees; and late fees related to registration and payment. Such user fees and fines shall not exceed the cost of the services provided and shall only be charged to persons receiving the service. Parking fee revenues may be pledged by a community college board of trustees as a dedicated revenue source for the repayment of debt, including lease-purchase agreements, with an overall term of not more than 7 years, including renewals, extensions, and refundings, and revenue bonds with a term not exceeding 20 years and not exceeding the useful life of the asset being financed. Community colleges shall use the services of the Division of Bond Finance of the State Board of Administration to issue any revenue bonds authorized by this subsection. Any such bonds issued by the Division of Bond Finance shall be in compliance with the provisions of the State Bond Act. Bonds issued pursuant to the State Bond Act may be validated in the manner established in chapter 75. The complaint for such validation shall be filed in the circuit court of the county where the seat of state government is situated, the notice required to be published by s. 75.06 shall be published only in the county where the complaint is filed, and the complaint and order of the circuit court shall be served only on the state attorney of the circuit in which the action is pending.

(10)  Each school district and community college may assess a service charge for the payment of tuition and fees in installments. Such service charge must be approved by the district school board or community college board of trustees.

(11)  Any school district or community college that reports students who have not paid fees in an approved manner in calculations of full-time equivalent enrollments for state funding purposes shall be penalized at a rate equal to 2 times the value of such enrollments. Such penalty shall be charged against the following year's allocation from workforce education funds or the Community College Program Fund and shall revert to the General Revenue Fund. The State Board of Education shall specify, in rule, approved methods of student fee payment. Such methods must include, but need not be limited to, student fee payment; payment through federal, state, or institutional financial aid; and employer fee payments.

(12)  Each school district and community college shall report only those students who have actually enrolled in instruction provided or supervised by instructional personnel under contract with the district or community college in calculations of actual full-time enrollments for state funding purposes. A student who has been exempted from taking a course or who has been granted academic or technical credit through means other than actual coursework completed at the granting institution may not be calculated for enrollment in the course from which the student has been exempted or for which the student has been granted credit. School districts and community colleges that report enrollments in violation of this subsection shall be penalized at a rate equal to 2 times the value of such enrollments. Such penalty shall be charged against the following year's allocation from workforce education funds and shall revert to the General Revenue Fund.

History.--s. 401, ch. 2002-387; s. 8, ch. 2004-357; s. 1, ch. 2007-329; ss. 1, 2, ch. 2008-109; s. 3, ch. 2008-163.