House Bill 3599

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    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HB 3599

        By the Committee on Education Innovation and
    Representatives Melvin, Dockery, Edwards, Wise and Wallace





  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to educational facilities;

  3         amending s. 235.056, F.S.; authorizing boards

  4         to rent or lease certain buildings or space

  5         within buildings for conversion to use as

  6         educational facilities; providing for funding;

  7         requiring school board adoption of a resolution

  8         certifying that specified conditions have been

  9         met; amending s. 201.24, F.S., relating to

10         exemption from excise tax on documents;

11         conforming provisions; amending s. 236.25,

12         F.S., relating to school district tax for

13         capital outlay; conforming provisions;

14         providing an effective date.

15

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

17

18         Section 1.  Subsection (3) is added to section 235.056,

19  Florida Statutes, as amended by House Bill 17-A, 1997 Special

20  Session, to read:

21         235.056  Lease, rental, and lease-purchase of

22  educational facilities and sites.--

23         (3)(a)  A board may rent or lease existing buildings,

24  or space within existing buildings, originally constructed or

25  used for purposes other than education, for conversion to use

26  as educational facilities. Such buildings rented or leased for

27  1 year or less shall be funded through the operations budget

28  or funds derived from millage pursuant to s. 236.25(2). A

29  rental agreement or lease contract for 1 year or less, when

30  extended or renewed beyond a year, becomes a multiple-year

31  rental or lease. Operational funds or funds derived from

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    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HB 3599

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  1  millage proceeds pursuant to s. 236.25(2) may be authorized to

  2  be expended for multiple-year rentals or leases.

  3  Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, if a

  4  building was constructed in conformance with all applicable

  5  building and life safety codes, it shall be deemed to meet the

  6  requirements for use and occupancy as an educational facility

  7  subject only to the provisions of this subsection.

  8         (b)  Prior to occupying a rented or a leased existing

  9  building, or space within an existing building, pursuant to

10  this subsection, a school board shall, in a public meeting,

11  adopt a resolution certifying that the following circumstances

12  apply to the building proposed for occupancy:

13         1.  Growth among the school-age population in the

14  school district has created a need for new educational

15  facilities in a neighborhood where there is little or no

16  vacant land.

17         2.  There exists a supply of vacant space in existing

18  buildings that meet state minimum building and life safety

19  codes.

20         3.  Acquisition and conversion to use as educational

21  facilities of an existing building or buildings is a

22  cost-saving means of providing the needed classroom space as

23  determined by the difference between the cost of new

24  construction, including land acquisition and preparation and,

25  if applicable, demolition of existing structures, and the cost

26  of acquisition through rental or lease and conversion of an

27  existing building or buildings.

28         4.  The building has been examined for suitability,

29  safety, and conformance with state minimum building and life

30  safety codes. The building examination shall consist, at a

31  minimum, of a review of existing documents, building site

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  1  reconnaissance, and analysis of the building conducted by, or

  2  under the responsible charge of, a licensed structural

  3  engineer.

  4         5.  A certificate of evaluation has been issued by the

  5  structural engineer which states that, based on available

  6  documents, building site reconnaissance, current knowledge,

  7  and engineering judgment in the engineer's professional

  8  opinion, the building meets the requirements of state minimum

  9  building and life safety codes, provides safe egress of

10  occupants from the building, provides adequate fire safety,

11  and does not pose a substantial threat to life to persons who

12  would occupy the building for classroom use.

13         6.  The plans for conversion of the building were

14  prepared by an architect or structural engineer licensed in

15  this state, and the work of conversion was performed by

16  contractors licensed in this state.

17         7.  The conversion of the building was observed by an

18  architect or structural engineer licensed in this state.

19         8.  The building has been reviewed, inspected, and

20  granted a certificate of occupancy by the local building

21  department.

22         9.  All ceilings, light fixtures, ducts, and registers

23  within the area to be occupied for classroom purposes were

24  constructed or have been reconstructed to meet state minimum

25  requirements.

26         Section 2.  Subsection (2) of section 201.24, Florida

27  Statutes, is amended to read:

28         201.24  Obligations of municipalities, political

29  subdivisions, and agencies of the state.--There shall be

30  exempt from all taxes imposed by this chapter:

31

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  1         (2)  Any assignment, transfer, or other disposition, or

  2  any document, which arises out of a rental, lease, or

  3  lease-purchase for real property agreement entered pursuant to

  4  s. 235.056(2) or (3).

  5         Section 3.  Paragraph (h) of subsection (2) and

  6  subsection (5) of section 236.25, Florida Statutes, as amended

  7  by House Bill 17-A, 1997 Special Session, are amended to read:

  8         236.25  District school tax.--

  9         (2)  In addition to the maximum millage levy as

10  provided in subsection (1), each school board may levy not

11  more than 2 mills against the taxable value for school

12  purposes to fund:

13         (h)  Payment of costs of leasing relocatable

14  educational facilities, and of renting or leasing educational

15  facilities and sites pursuant to s. 235.056(2), or of renting

16  or leasing buildings or space within existing buildings

17  pursuant to s. 235.056(3).

18

19  Violations of these expenditure provisions shall result in an

20  equal dollar reduction in the Florida Education Finance

21  Program (FEFP) funds for the violating district in the fiscal

22  year following the audit citation.

23         (5)(a)  It is the intent of the Legislature that, by

24  July 1, 2003, revenue generated by the millage levy authorized

25  by subsection (2) should be used only for the costs of

26  construction, renovation, remodeling, maintenance, and repair

27  of the educational plant; for the purchase, lease, or

28  lease-purchase of equipment, educational plants, and

29  construction materials directly related to the delivery of

30  student instruction; for the rental or lease of existing

31  buildings, or space within existing buildings, originally

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  1  constructed or used for purposes other than education, for

  2  conversion to use as educational facilities; for the opening

  3  day collection for the library media center of a new school;

  4  for the purchase, lease-purchase, or lease of school buses;

  5  and for servicing of payments related to certificates of

  6  participation issued for any purpose prior to the effective

  7  date of this act. Costs associated with the lease-purchase of

  8  equipment, educational plants, and school buses may include

  9  the issuance of certificates of participation on or after the

10  effective date of this act and the servicing of payments

11  related to certificates so issued. For purposes of this

12  section, "maintenance and repair" is defined in s. 235.011.

13         (b)  For purposes not delineated in paragraph (a) for

14  which proceeds received from millage levied under subsection

15  (2) may be legally expended, a district school board may spend

16  no more than the following percentages of the amount the

17  district spent for these purposes in fiscal year 1995-1996:

18         1.  In fiscal year 1997-1998, 85 percent.

19         2.  In fiscal year 1998-1999, 70 percent.

20         3.  In fiscal year 1999-2000, 55 percent.

21         4.  In fiscal year 2000-2001, 40 percent.

22         5.  In fiscal year 2001-2002, 25 percent.

23         6.  In fiscal year 2002-2003, 10 percent.

24         (c)  Beginning July 1, 2003, revenue generated by the

25  millage levy authorized by subsection (2) must be used only

26  for the purposes delineated in paragraph (a).

27         (d)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this

28  subsection, if through its adopted facilities work program a

29  district has clearly identified the need for an ancillary

30  plant, has provided opportunity for public input as to the

31  relative value of the ancillary plant versus an educational

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  1  plant, and has obtained public approval, the district may use

  2  revenue generated by the millage levy authorized by subsection

  3  (2) for the construction, renovation, remodeling, maintenance,

  4  or repair of an ancillary plant.

  5

  6  A district that violates these expenditure restrictions shall

  7  have an equal dollar reduction in funds appropriated to the

  8  district under s. 236.081 in the fiscal year following the

  9  audit citation.  The expenditure restrictions do not apply to

10  any school district that certifies to the Commissioner of

11  Education that all of the district's instructional space needs

12  for the next 5 years can be met from capital outlay sources

13  that the district reasonably expects to receive during the

14  next 5 years or from alternative scheduling or construction,

15  leasing, rezoning, or technological methodologies that exhibit

16  sound management.

17         Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1 of the

18  year in which enacted.

19

20            *****************************************

21                          HOUSE SUMMARY

22
      Authorizes boards to rent or lease existing buildings, or
23    space within existing buildings, originally constructed
      or used for purposes other than education, for conversion
24    to use as educational facilities. Provides certain
      requirements and for funding through the school district
25    operations budget or school district tax for capital
      outlay.
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