Senate Bill sb1984e1

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    SB 1984                                  First Engrossed (ntc)



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to trust funds; creating s.

  3         246.143, F.S.; creating the Institutional

  4         Assessment Trust Fund within the Department of

  5         Education; providing for the trust fund to be

  6         used for the operations of the Commission for

  7         Independent Education; providing for sources of

  8         funds; providing for an annual carryforward of

  9         funds; authorizing the commission to establish

10         a contingency fund and a Student Protection

11         Fund within the Institutional Assessment Trust

12         Fund; providing for sources of funds; providing

13         for funds in the Student Protection Fund to be

14         used to assist students in completing their

15         education under certain circumstances;

16         providing for future review and termination or

17         re-creation of the trust fund; providing a

18         contingent effective date.

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

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22         Section 1.  Section 246.143, Florida Statutes, is

23  created to read:

24         246.143  Institutional Assessment Trust Fund.--

25         (1)  There is created the Institutional Assessment

26  Trust Fund to be administered by the Department of Education

27  pursuant to this section and rules of the Commission for

28  Independent Education. The trust fund shall consist of all

29  fees and fines imposed upon independent postsecondary

30  educational institutions pursuant to chapter 246, including

31  all fees collected from such institutions for participation in


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    SB 1984                                  First Engrossed (ntc)



  1  the common course designation and numbering system. The

  2  Department of Education shall maintain all revenue collected

  3  pursuant to chapter 246, in a separate account for the sole

  4  use of the Commission for Independent Education. A monthly

  5  accounting of this fund, including interest accrued, shall be

  6  provided to the commission. The commission may use other

  7  individuals or entities to administer the programs assigned to

  8  the commission by law. Notwithstanding s. 216.301 and pursuant

  9  to s. 216.351, any balance in the Institutional Assessment

10  Trust Fund at the end of any fiscal year shall remain in the

11  trust fund and shall be available for carrying out the

12  purposes of the trust fund. Funds from the trust fund may be

13  used for the following purposes:

14         (a)  Authorized expenses of the commission in carrying

15  out its required duties.

16         (b)  Financial assistance programs for students

17  attending institutions licensed by the commission.

18         (c)  Educational programs for the benefit of current

19  and prospective owners, administrators, agents, authorized

20  groups of individuals, and faculty of institutions that

21  receive, seek, or hold licensure by the commission.

22         (d)  Authorized expenses of the Department of Education

23  incurred as a result of the inclusion of independent

24  postsecondary educational institutions under the purview of

25  the commission in the common course designation and numbering

26  system.

27         (2)  The commission may establish and maintain a

28  contingency fund within the trust fund. The contingency fund

29  may be used for unforeseen legitimate expenses incurred by the

30  commission in administering and enforcing chapter 246.

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    SB 1984                                  First Engrossed (ntc)



  1         (3)  The Student Protection Fund is established as a

  2  separate account within the Institutional Assessment Trust

  3  Fund.

  4         (a)  The fund shall consist entirely of fees assessed

  5  against licensed institutions. The fund may not be funded by

  6  public funds and the commission may not make payments, and is

  7  not obligated to make payments, from the fund in excess of the

  8  assessments actually received from licensed institutions and

  9  deposited in the Institutional Assessment Trust Fund to the

10  credit of the Student Protection Fund. The amount of fees

11  assessed to an institution shall be based upon the number of

12  students enrolled. If a licensed institution terminates a

13  program before all students complete the program, the

14  commission shall also assess that institution a fee adequate

15  to pay the full cost to the Student Protection Fund of

16  completing the training of those students.

17         (b)  The commission shall use the fund as a financial

18  program to make funds available to complete the training of a

19  student who enrolls in a program at a licensed institution

20  that terminates a program or ceases operation before the

21  student has completed the program of study.

22         (c)  The Student Protection Fund shall be maintained in

23  an actuarially sound condition, be audited periodically, and

24  be reviewed periodically in order to determine if additional

25  fees must be charged to maintain an appropriate balance. At

26  each commission meeting, the commission shall receive a report

27  from its staff regarding expenses incurred by the Student

28  Protection Fund since the last meeting, the current balance in

29  the fund, and notification of any impending or actual

30  institutional closure or program termination that could expose

31  the fund to liability. The commission shall determine the need


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    SB 1984                                  First Engrossed (ntc)



  1  for any additional assessments, review the collection status

  2  of unpaid assessments, and take all necessary steps to collect

  3  them. The commission may, at its discretion, permit

  4  institutions that have paid into the fund for 5 years or more

  5  to forgo annual payment into the fund.

  6         (4)  In accordance with s. 19(f)(2), Art. III of the

  7  State Constitution, the Institutional Assessment Trust Fund

  8  shall, unless terminated sooner, be terminated on January 7,

  9  2007. Before its scheduled termination, the trust fund shall

10  be reviewed as provided in s. 215.3206(1) and (2).

11         Section 2.  This act shall take effect January 7, 2003,

12  if Senate Bill 2022, relating to independent postsecondary

13  educational institutions or similar legislation is adopted in

14  the same legislative session, or an extension thereof, and

15  becomes a law.

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