House Bill hb0001er

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  2         An act relating to educational facilities;

  3         amending s. 235.435, F.S.; authorizing school

  4         districts to qualify construction projects for

  5         funding under the Special Facility Construction

  6         Account by using the school capital outlay

  7         surtax in lieu of the maximum millage against

  8         their nonexempt assessed property value;

  9         specifying funding eligibility of certain

10         projects; providing for future repeal of such

11         eligibility provision; providing an effective

12         date.

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14  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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16         Section 1.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section

17  235.435, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

18         235.435  Funds for comprehensive educational plant

19  needs; construction cost maximums for school district capital

20  projects.--Allocations from the Public Education Capital

21  Outlay and Debt Service Trust Fund to the various boards for

22  capital outlay projects shall be determined as follows:

23         (2)(a)  The department shall establish, as a part of

24  the Public Education Capital Outlay and Debt Service Trust

25  Fund, a separate account, in an amount determined by the

26  Legislature, to be known as the "Special Facility Construction

27  Account." The Special Facility Construction Account shall be

28  used to provide necessary construction funds to school

29  districts which have urgent construction needs but which lack

30  sufficient resources at present, and cannot reasonably

31  anticipate sufficient resources within the period of the next


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  1  3 years, for these purposes from currently authorized sources

  2  of capital outlay revenue.  A school district requesting

  3  funding from the Special Facility Construction Account shall

  4  submit one specific construction project, not to exceed one

  5  complete educational plant, to the Special Facility

  6  Construction Committee. No district shall receive funding for

  7  more than one approved project in any 3-year period. The first

  8  year of the 3-year period shall be the first year a district

  9  receives an appropriation. The department shall encourage a

10  construction program that reduces the average size of schools

11  in the district. The request must meet the following criteria

12  to be considered by the committee:

13         1.  The project must be deemed a critical need and must

14  be recommended for funding by the Special Facility

15  Construction Committee.  Prior to developing plans for the

16  proposed facility, the district school board must request a

17  preapplication review by the Special Facility Construction

18  Committee or a project review subcommittee convened by the

19  committee to include two representatives of the department and

20  two staff from school districts other than the district

21  submitting the project.  Within 60 days after receiving the

22  preapplication review request, the committee or subcommittee

23  must meet in the school district to review the project

24  proposal and existing facilities.  To determine whether the

25  proposed project is a critical need, the committee or

26  subcommittee shall consider, at a mimimum, the capacity of all

27  existing facilities within the district as determined by the

28  Florida Inventory of School Houses; the district's pattern of

29  student growth; the district's existing and projected capital

30  outlay full-time equivalent student enrollment as determined

31  by the department; the district's existing satisfactory


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  1  student stations; the use of all existing district property

  2  and facilities; grade level configurations; and any other

  3  information that may affect the need for the proposed project.

  4         2.  The construction project must be recommended in the

  5  most recent survey or surveys by the district under the rules

  6  of the State Board of Education.

  7         3.  The construction project must appear on the

  8  district's approved project priority list under the rules of

  9  the State Board of Education.

10         4.  The district must have selected and had approved a

11  site for the construction project in compliance with s. 235.19

12  and the rules of the State Board of Education.

13         5.  The district shall have developed a school board

14  adopted list of facilities that do not exceed the norm for net

15  square feet occupancy requirements under the State

16  Requirements for Educational Facilities, using all possible

17  programmatic combinations for multiple use of space to obtain

18  maximum daily use of all spaces within the facility under

19  consideration.

20         6.  Upon construction, the total cost per student

21  station, including change orders, must not exceed the cost per

22  student station as provided in subsection (6).

23         7.  There shall be an agreement signed by the district

24  school board stating that it will advertise for bids within 30

25  days of receipt of its encumbrance authorization from the

26  department.

27         8.  The district shall, at the time of the request and

28  for a continuing period of 3 years, levy the maximum millage

29  against their nonexempt assessed property value as allowed in

30  s. 236.25(2) or shall raise an equivalent amount of revenue

31  from the school capital outlay surtax authorized under s.


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  1  212.055(6). Effective July 1, 1991, any district with a new or

  2  active project, funded under the provisions of this

  3  subsection, shall be required to budget no more than the value

  4  of 1.5 mills per year to the project to satisfy the annual

  5  participation requirement in the Special Facility Construction

  6  Account.

  7         9.  If a contract has not been signed 90 days after the

  8  advertising of bids, the funding for the specific project

  9  shall revert to the Special Facility New Construction Account

10  to be reallocated to other projects on the list.  However, an

11  additional 90 days may be granted by the commissioner.

12         10.  The department shall certify the inability of the

13  district to fund the survey-recommended project over a

14  continuous 3-year period using projected capital outlay

15  revenue derived from s. 9(d), Art. XII of the State

16  Constitution, as amended, paragraph (3)(a) of this section,

17  and s. 236.25(2).

18         11.  The district shall have on file with the

19  department an adopted resolution acknowledging its 3-year

20  commitment of all unencumbered and future revenue acquired

21  from s. 9(d), Art. XII of the State Constitution, as amended,

22  paragraph (3)(a) of this section, and s. 236.25(2).

23         12.  Final phase III plans must be certified by the

24  board as complete and in compliance with the building and life

25  safety codes prior to August 1.

26         Section 2.  Any special facility construction project

27  for which phase III plans were certified by August 1, 2000, as

28  complete and in compliance with the building and life safety

29  codes as required by s. 235.435(2)(a)12., Florida Statutes, is

30  eligible for funding under s. 235.435(2), Florida Statutes, as

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  1  amended by this act, if otherwise qualified, beginning July 1,

  2  2001. This section is repealed October 1, 2002.

  3         Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

  4  law.

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