HB 1325

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to education; amending s. 220.187, F.S.,
3	relating to the Corporate Income Tax Credit Scholarship
4	Program; providing legislative findings; revising program
5	purposes; defining the term "parent"; providing that
6	specified students who have been in educational programs
7	of the Department of Juvenile Justice or in foster care
8	are eligible for participation in the scholarship program;
9	providing income criteria for continuation of scholarships
10	for students in foster care; providing for eligibility of
11	siblings of certain students; revising provisions relating
12	to the amount and authorized uses of a scholarship;
13	revising provisions relating to the expenditure of
14	contributions received during the fiscal year; revising
15	limits on scholarship amounts and payments; providing for
16	preserving certain credits if a court finds certain
17	provisions are invalid; amending s. 1002.39, F.S.,
18	relating to the John M. McKay Scholarships for Students
19	with Disabilities Program; revising scholarship
20	ineligibility and private school eligibility provisions to
21	exempt certain students from regular class attendance
22	requirements under certain circumstances; revising
23	Department of Education obligations relating to cross-
24	check of student enrollment; providing private school
25	requirements relating to discovery of duplicative
26	enrollment and penalties or appeals under certain
27	circumstances; requiring a private school to maintain a
28	physical location in this state where case management
29	services are provided to students subject to the regular
30	class attendance exemption; requiring a private school to
31	employ a case manager for such students; specifying case
32	manager qualifications and responsibilities; specifying
33	the timeframe for parents to provide documentation for the
34	regular class attendance exemption; creating s. 1008.346,
35	F.S.; providing legislative intent and findings; requiring
36	the Commissioner of Education to develop a program to
37	improve failing schools; providing requirements concerning
38	the program; providing for the creation of an advisory
39	council; providing for membership and duties of the
40	council; requiring that the commissioner consult with the
41	Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government
42	Accountability and certain district community assessment
43	teams concerning the program; providing for coordination
44	and consistency with strategic planning initiatives of the
45	Department of Education or the State Board of Education;
46	requiring an annual report concerning implementation of
47	the program; providing an effective date.
48
49	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
50
51	Section 1.  Subsections (1) and (3), paragraphs (d) and (i)
52	of subsection (6), and paragraphs (a) and (c) of subsection (11)
53	of section 220.187, Florida Statutes, are amended, paragraph (f)
54	is added to subsection (2), and subsection (14) is added to that
55	section, to read:
56	220.187  Credits for contributions to nonprofit
57	scholarship-funding organizations.--
58	(1)  FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.--
59	(a)  The Legislature finds that:
60	1.  It has the inherent power to determine subjects of
61	taxation for general or particular public purposes.
62	2.  Expanding educational opportunities and improving the
63	quality of educational services in this state and ensuring that
64	all parents, regardless of means, may exercise and enjoy their
65	basic right to educate their children as they see fit are valid
66	public purposes that the Legislature may promote using its
67	sovereign power to determine subjects of taxation and exemptions
68	from taxation.
69	3.  The existence of programs that provide expanded
70	educational opportunities in this state has not been shown to
71	reduce funding to or otherwise harm public schools in this
72	state, and, to the contrary, per-student funding in public
73	schools has risen each year since the inception of such programs
74	in 1999.
75	4.  Expanded educational opportunities and the healthy
76	competition that such opportunities promote are critical to
77	improving the quality of education in this state and to ensuring
78	that all children receive the high-quality education to which
79	they are entitled.
80	(b)  The purpose of this section is to:
81	1.(a)  Enable taxpayers to make Encourage private,
82	voluntary contributions to nonprofit scholarship-funding
83	organizations in order to promote the general welfare.
84	2.  Provide a means for taxpayers to voluntarily help
85	parents having limited resources exercise their basic right to
86	educate their children as they see fit.
87	3.(b)  Promote the general welfare by expanding Expand
88	educational opportunities for children of families that have
89	limited financial resources.
90	4.(c)  Enable children in this state to achieve a greater
91	level of excellence in their education.
92	5.  Improve the quality of education in this state by
93	expanding educational opportunities for children and creating
94	incentives for schools to achieve excellence.
95	(2)  DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section, the term:
96	(f)  "Parent" has the same meaning as in s. 1000.21.
97	(3)  PROGRAM; SCHOLARSHIP ELIGIBILITY.--
98	(a)  The Corporate Income Tax Credit Scholarship Program is
99	established. A student is eligible for a corporate income tax
100	credit scholarship if the student qualifies for free or reduced-
101	price school lunches under the National School Lunch Act and:
102	1.(a)  Was counted as a full-time equivalent student during
103	the previous state fiscal year for purposes of state per-student
104	funding;
105	2.  Was counted as a full-time equivalent student at any
106	time during the previous state fiscal year in an educational
107	program of the Department of Juvenile Justice under s. 1003.52
108	for purposes of state per-student funding;
109	3.(b)  Received a scholarship from an eligible nonprofit
110	scholarship-funding organization or from the State of Florida
111	during the previous school year; or
112	4.(c)  Is eligible to enter kindergarten or first grade; or
113	5.  Is currently placed, or during the previous state
114	fiscal year was placed, in foster care as defined in s. 39.01.
115	(b)  Contingent upon available funds, a student may
116	continue in the scholarship program as long as the student's
117	family income level does not exceed 200 percent of the federal
118	poverty level. Family income for purposes of a student who is
119	currently in foster care as defined in s. 39.01 consists only of
120	the income that may be considered in determining whether he or
121	she qualifies for free or reduced-price school lunches under the
122	National School Lunch Act. A sibling of a student who is
123	continuing in the program is eligible as a first-time corporate
124	income tax credit scholarship recipient if the sibling resides
125	in the same household as the student and the student's and
126	sibling's family income level does not exceed 200 percent of the
127	federal poverty level.
128	(6)  OBLIGATIONS OF ELIGIBLE NONPROFIT SCHOLARSHIP-FUNDING
129	ORGANIZATIONS.--An eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding
130	organization:
131	(d)  Must provide scholarships, from eligible
132	contributions, to eligible students for:
133	1.  Tuition, or textbook expenses, or registration fees
134	for, or transportation to, an eligible private school. The
135	amount of the scholarship shall be the maximum allowed by law or
136	the amount of the private school's textbook expenses and
137	published tuition and registration fees, whichever is less At
138	least 75 percent of the scholarship funding must be used to pay
139	tuition expenses; or
140	2.  Transportation expenses to a Florida public school that
141	is located outside the district in which the student resides or
142	to a lab school as defined in s. 1002.32.
143	(i)  Must expend for annual or partial-year scholarships in
144	a fiscal year at least 75 percent of the eligible scholarship
145	contributions received in that fiscal year. Up to 25 percent of
146	the eligible scholarship contributions received in a fiscal year
147	may be carried forward to the succeeding fiscal year; however,
148	any amounts carried forward must be expended for obligate, in
149	the same fiscal year in which the contribution was received, 100
150	percent of the eligible contribution to provide annual or
151	partial-year scholarships; however, up to 25 percent of the
152	total contribution may be carried forward for expenditure in
153	such succeeding the following state fiscal year. A scholarship-
154	funding organization must, before granting a scholarship for an
155	academic year, document each scholarship student's eligibility
156	for that academic year. A scholarship-funding organization may
157	not grant multiyear scholarships in one approval process. No
158	portion of eligible contributions may be used for administrative
159	expenses. All interest accrued from contributions must be used
160	for scholarships.
161
162	Any and all information and documentation provided to the
163	Department of Education and the Auditor General relating to the
164	identity of a taxpayer that provides an eligible contribution
165	under this section shall remain confidential at all times in
166	accordance with s. 213.053.
167	(11)  SCHOLARSHIP AMOUNT AND PAYMENT.--
168	(a)  The amount of a scholarship provided to any student
169	for any single school year by an eligible nonprofit scholarship-
170	funding organization from eligible contributions may shall not
171	exceed the following annual limits:
172	1.  Three thousand seven hundred fifty dollars for a
173	scholarship awarded to a student enrolled in kindergarten
174	through grade 5 in an eligible private school.
175	2.  Four thousand dollars for a scholarship awarded to a
176	student enrolled in grades 6 through 8 in an eligible private
177	school.
178	3.  Four thousand two hundred fifty dollars for a
179	scholarship awarded to a student enrolled in grades 9 through 12
180	in an eligible private school.
181	4.2.  Five hundred dollars for a scholarship awarded to a
182	student enrolled in a Florida public school that is located
183	outside the district in which the student resides or in a lab
184	school as defined in s. 1002.32.
185	(c)  An eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization
186	shall obtain verification from the private school of a student's
187	continued attendance at the school for prior to each period
188	covered by a scholarship payment.
189	(14)  PRESERVATION OF CREDIT.--If a court determines that a
190	provision or portion of subsection (5), or the application of a
191	provision or portion of subsection (5), is unconstitutional or
192	otherwise invalid, the court's determination does not affect any
193	credit earned by a taxpayer under subsection (5) for a
194	contribution made to an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding
195	organization before the date of the court's determination. Such
196	a credit shall be allowed at such time and in such a manner as
197	if the court had not made such a determination of
198	unconstitutionality or invalidity. However, this subsection does
199	not, by itself or in combination with any other law, authorize
200	any result that allows a taxpayer to receive a credit of more
201	than one dollar for each dollar such taxpayer contributed to an
202	eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization.
203	Section 2.  Paragraph (h) of subsection (3), paragraph (e)
204	of subsection (6), and subsection (8) of section 1002.39,
205	Florida Statutes, are amended, and paragraph (g) is added to
206	subsection (9) of that section, to read:
207	1002.39  The John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with
208	Disabilities Program.--There is established a program that is
209	separate and distinct from the Opportunity Scholarship Program
210	and is named the John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with
211	Disabilities Program.
212	(3)  JOHN M. MCKAY SCHOLARSHIP PROHIBITIONS.--A student is
213	not eligible for a John M. McKay Scholarship while he or she is:
214	(h)  Not having regular and direct contact with his or her
215	private school teachers at the school's physical location unless
216	the following criteria are met:
217	1.  The student's primary care physician, a medical doctor
218	treating the student's disability, or a clinical psychologist
219	treating the student's disability provides a notarized, sworn
220	statement to the department certifying that the student's
221	welfare or the welfare of other students in the classroom will
222	be jeopardized if the student is required to regularly attend
223	class at the school's physical location.
224	2.  The student's primary care physician, a medical doctor
225	treating the student's disability, or a clinical psychologist
226	treating the student's disability annually reviews the student's
227	case and recertifies to the department by May 1 that the
228	student's welfare or the welfare of other students in the
229	classroom will be jeopardized if the student is required to
230	regularly attend class at the school's physical location.
231
232	A student who received a scholarship in the 2006-2007 or 2007-
233	2008 school year and who demonstrates that he or she met the
234	criteria of subparagraph 1. is eligible, despite a lack of such
235	contact in one or both of such school years, to receive a
236	scholarship beginning in the 2008-2009 school year.
237	(6)  DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION OBLIGATIONS.--The department
238	shall:
239	(e)  Cross-check the list of participating scholarship
240	students with the public school enrollment lists prior to each
241	scholarship payment to avoid duplication in accordance with the
242	following deadlines:
243	1.  For the scholarship payment due no later than September
244	1 under paragraph (10)(e), the department shall complete the
245	cross-check within 21 days after the opening date adopted under
246	s. 1001.42(4)(f) for public schools in the school district in
247	which the scholarship student resides.
248	2.  For all other scholarship payments under paragraph
249	(10)(e), the department shall complete the cross-check before
250	each payment.
251
252	The department shall send a written notice via certified mail to
253	a private school within 7 business days after discovering a
254	duplication. Within 7 business days after receipt of the
255	department's notice of duplication, the private school shall
256	respond by returning the duplicative warrant to the department
257	or providing the department with documentation evidencing the
258	scholarship recipient's attendance at the private school. If a
259	private school does not provide such a response, the
260	Commissioner of Education shall suspend future scholarship
261	payments to the private school until the response is provided.
262	An order by the commissioner suspending payment under this
263	paragraph may be appealed under the same procedures and
264	timeframes as the notice of proposed action set forth in
265	paragraph (7)(b).
266	(8)  PRIVATE SCHOOL ELIGIBILITY AND OBLIGATIONS.--To be
267	eligible to participate in the John M. McKay Scholarships for
268	Students with Disabilities Program:,
269	(a)  A private school may be sectarian or nonsectarian and
270	must:
271	1.(a)  Comply with all requirements for private schools
272	participating in state school choice scholarship programs
273	pursuant to s. 1002.421.
274	2.(b)  Provide to the department all documentation required
275	for a student's participation, including the private school's
276	and student's fee schedules, at least 30 days before the first
277	quarterly scholarship payment is made for the student.
278	3.(c)  Be academically accountable to the parent for
279	meeting the educational needs of the student by:
280	a.1.  Providing to the parent, at a minimum, an annual
281	annually providing to the parent a written report explanation of
282	the student's progress.
283	b.2.  Cooperating with the scholarship student whose parent
284	chooses to participate in the statewide assessments pursuant to
285	s. 1008.22.
286	4.(d)  Maintain in this state a physical location where a
287	scholarship student:
288	a.  Regularly attends classes; or
289	b.  Receives case management services if the student is
290	exempt from regular class attendance under subparagraph (3)(h)1.
291	or subparagraph (3)(h)2.
292	(b)  A private school that enrolls a student who is exempt
293	from regular class attendance under subparagraph (3)(h)1. or
294	subparagraph (3)(h)2. must:
295	1.  Employ or contract with a case manager who has special
296	skills, knowledge, or expertise that qualifies him or her to
297	provide assistance to the student with disabilities and the
298	student's parent.
299	2.  Require each employee or contractor who provides
300	regular and direct instruction or services to a student at a
301	site other than the private school's physical location to submit
302	to the case manager documentation of the instruction, services,
303	and progress of the student.
304	3.  Ensure that the case manager is responsible for
305	coordinating instruction and services, monitoring service
306	delivery, reviewing and maintaining the documentation submitted
307	by employees or contractors hired to provide services to a
308	student at a site other than the private school's physical
309	location, and providing to the parent and the school a quarterly
310	report on the student's progress.
311	4.  Notify the department of the students enrolled in the
312	school who are exempt from regular class attendance under
313	subparagraph (3)(h)1. or subparagraph (3)(h)2.
314
315	The inability of a private school to meet the requirements of
316	this subsection constitutes shall constitute a basis for the
317	ineligibility of the private school to participate in the
318	scholarship program as determined by the department.
319	(9)  PARENT AND STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES FOR PROGRAM
320	PARTICIPATION.--A parent who applies for a John M. McKay
321	Scholarship is exercising his or her parental option to place
322	his or her child in a private school.
323	(g)  The parent of a student with disabilities who
324	qualifies to receive case management services under sub-
325	subparagraph (8)(a)4.b. shall provide the documentation required
326	under subparagraph (3)(h)1. or subparagraph (3)(h)2. to the
327	department at least 60 days before the first scholarship
328	payment.
329	Section 3.  Section 1008.346, Florida Statutes, is created
330	to read:
331	1008.346  Strategic program to improve schools failing to
332	make adequate progress.--
333	(1)  The Legislature intends that the state develop and
334	implement a comprehensive strategic program to facilitate the
335	improvement of schools that are failing to make adequate
336	progress based on the school performance grading categories
337	established by law. The Legislature finds that achieving
338	meaningful and lasting progress in these schools will take a
339	number of years. Thus, the Legislature intends that the program
340	developed under this section include a multiyear design and
341	implementation schedule and provide measurable goals and
342	objectives for these schools.
343	(2)  In coordination with the responsibilities prescribed
344	in s. 1008.345, the Commissioner of Education shall develop and
345	submit to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
346	House of Representatives by February 1, 2009, a multifaceted
347	program of policies and practices directed specifically toward
348	schools in the "F" grade category under s. 1008.34. At a
349	minimum, the program must:
350	(a)  Include an assessment of the extent to which new
351	policies, or enhancements to existing policies, in the following
352	areas would facilitate improvement at these schools:
353	1.  Capital improvements to school facilities;
354	2.  Incentives to encourage outstanding faculty and staff
355	to transfer to these schools;
356	3.  Equipment and supplies;
357	4.  Technology infrastructure, hardware, or software;
358	5.  Incentives to encourage parents and other family
359	members to participate in a child's education; and
360	6.  Mentoring and other forms of participation by members
361	of the community.
362	(b)  Include a suggested order of priority and schedule for
363	adopting, funding, and implementing policies and practices over
364	a 5-year period.
365	(c)  Specify those elements of the program that can be
366	accomplished within existing statutory authority and those
367	requiring new statutory authority.
368	(d)  Include specific recommendations for action by the
369	Legislature.
370	(3)  The commissioner shall create an advisory council in
371	accordance with s. 20.052 that is comprised of at least two
372	teachers, two staff persons, and two parents of students from
373	one or more schools that are failing to make adequate progress
374	based on the school performance grading categories and any other
375	individuals the commissioner deems appropriate. The advisory
376	council shall assist the commissioner in developing and
377	implementing the program required by this section and in
378	annually notifying the parents of students in failing schools
379	who qualify for free or reduced-price lunches under the National
380	School Lunch Act of the availability of scholarships under s.
381	220.187. Such notice must be provided in sufficient time to
382	allow the parent to apply and have his or her child approved for
383	a scholarship.
384	(4)  In developing and implementing the program, the
385	commissioner shall consult with the district community
386	assessment teams assigned under s. 1008.345(6)(d) and with the
387	Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability.
388	(5)  The program shall be developed in coordination with,
389	and shall be consistent with, other strategic planning
390	initiatives of the Department of Education or the State Board of
391	Education.
392	(6)  The Commissioner of Education shall report annually to
393	the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of
394	the House of Representatives on the implementation of the
395	program.
396	Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2008.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.