HB 0911 2003
1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to the Florida Academic Improvement Trust
3	Fund matching grants; amending s. 1011.765, F.S.;
4	providing for the use of such funds for classroom support;
5	revising the means of allocating such funds; providing an
6	effective date.
7
8	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
9
10	Section 1. Section 1011.765, Florida Statutes, is amended
11	to read:
12	1011.765 Florida Academic Improvement Trust Fund matching
13	grants.--
14	(1) MATCHING GRANTS.--The Florida Academic Improvement
15	Trust Fund shall be utilized to provide matching grants to the
16	Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind Endowment Fund and to
17	any public school district education foundation that meets the
18	requirements of this section and is recognized by the local
19	school district as its designated K-12 education foundation.
20	(a) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules for the
21	administration, submission, documentation, evaluation, and
22	approval of requests for matching funds and for maintaining
23	accountability for matching funds.
24	(b) Donations, state matching funds, or proceeds from
25	endowments established pursuant to this section shall be used at
26	the discretion of the public school district education
27	foundation or the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind for
28	academic achievement and classroom supportwithin the school
29	district or school, and shall not be expended for the
30	construction of facilities or for the support of interscholastic
31	athletics. No public school district education foundation or the
32	Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind shall accept or
33	purchase facilities for which the state will be asked for
34	operating funds unless the Legislature has granted prior
35	approval for such acquisition.
36	(2) ALLOCATION OF THE TRUST FUND.--Funds appropriated to
37	the Florida Academic Improvement Trust Fund shall be allocated
38	by the Consortium of Florida Education FoundationsDepartment of
39	Educationin the following manner:
40	(a) For every year in which there is a legislative
41	appropriation to the trust fund, 1 percentan equal amountof
42	the annual appropriation shall be allocated by match to each of,
43	to be determined by dividing the total legislative appropriation
44	by the number oflocal education foundations as well as the
45	Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind, with any remaining
46	funds distributed by unweighted FTEmust be reserved for each
47	public school district education foundation and the Florida
48	School for the Deaf and the Blind Endowment Fund to provide
49	each foundation and the Florida School for the Deaf and the
50	Blind with an opportunity to receive and match appropriated
51	funds. Trust funds that remain unmatched by contribution by
52	January 15on April 1of any year shall be made available for
53	matching by any public school district education foundation and
54	by the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind which shall
55	have an opportunity to apply for excess trust funds prior to the
56	award of such funds.
57	(b) Matching grants shall be proportionately allocated
58	from the trust fund on the basis of matching each $1$4of state
59	funds with $1$6of private funds. To be eligible for matching,
60	a minimum of $2,500$4,500must be raised from private sources.
61	(c) Funds sufficient to provide the match shall be
62	transferred from the state trust fund to the Consortium of
63	Florida Education Foundationspublic school education foundation
64	or to the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind Endowment
65	Fund upon certificationnotificationthat a proportionate amount
66	has been received and deposited by the individual foundation or
67	the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blindschool into its
68	own trust fund.
69	(d) If the total of the amounts to be distributed in any
70	quarter pursuant to this subsection exceeds the amount of funds
71	remaining from specific appropriations made for the
72	implementation of this section, all grants shall be
73	proportionately reduced so that the total of matching grants
74	distributed does not exceed available appropriations.
75	(3) GRANT ADMINISTRATION.--
76	(a) Each public school district education foundation and
77	the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind participating in
78	the Florida Academic Improvement Trust Fund shall separately
79	account for all funds received pursuant to this section, and may
80	establish its own academic improvement trust fund as a
81	depository for the private contributions, state matching funds,
82	and earnings on investments of such funds. State matching funds
83	shall be administered through the Consortium of Florida
84	Education Foundations, with an administrative fee, not to exceed
85	5 percent,transferredto the public school district education
86	foundation or to the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind
87	Endowment Fund upon certificationnotificationthat the
88	foundation or school has received and deposited private
89	contributions that meet the criteria for matching as provided in
90	this section. The public school district education foundations
91	and the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind are
92	responsible for the maintenance, investment, and administration
93	of their academic improvement trust funds.
94	(b) The public school district education foundations and
95	the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind shall be
96	responsible for soliciting and receiving contributions to be
97	deposited and matched with grants for academic achievement
98	within the school district or school.
99	(c) Each public school district education foundation and
100	the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind shall be
101	responsible for proper expenditure of the funds received
102	pursuant to this section.
103	Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2003.