House Bill 4111
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Florida House of Representatives - 1998 HB 4111
By Representative Dockery
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to Florida School Improvement
3 and Academic Achievement Trust Fund grants;
4 amending s. 236.1229, F.S.; revising funding,
5 allocation, and district-level administration;
6 providing an effective date.
7
8 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
9
10 Section 1. Section 236.1229, Florida Statutes, is
11 amended to read:
12 236.1229 Florida School Improvement and Academic
13 Achievement Trust Fund grants.--
14 (1) LEGISLATIVE INTENT.--The Legislature recognizes
15 that private contributions can play an important role in
16 enabling school districts to achieve a margin of excellence
17 within existing state and local funding. It is, therefore,
18 the intent of the Legislature to provide each school district
19 with the opportunity to receive private donations and provide
20 private donors with an incentive in the form of matching
21 grants for contributions for the improvement of schools and
22 academic programs within the district school system.
23 (2) FUNDING.--The Florida School Improvement and
24 Academic Achievement Trust Fund shall be utilized to provide
25 challenge grants and matching endowment grants to public
26 school district education foundations school boards that are
27 recognized as such by the Department of Education Florida
28 Education Foundation and meet the requirements of this
29 section. All funds appropriated or retained in the trust fund
30 shall be invested pursuant to s. 18.125. Notwithstanding the
31 provisions of s. 216.301, and pursuant to s. 216.351, any
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Florida House of Representatives - 1998 HB 4111
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1 undisbursed balance remaining in the trust fund and interest
2 accruing to that portion of the trust fund not matched and
3 distributed to the public school district education
4 foundations school boards shall remain in the trust fund and
5 shall increase the total funds available for challenge grants
6 and matching endowment grants.
7 (3) ADMINISTRATION.--The Commissioner of Education
8 shall specify procedures for submitting, documenting, and
9 approving requests for matching funds and for maintaining
10 accountability for endowments and the proceeds of endowments;
11 and establish restrictions on the use of proceeds from
12 endowments. The commissioner shall specify conditions under
13 which matching funds may be encumbered by a down payment and a
14 pledged schedule of future contributions. Such conditions
15 shall include conditions of default and reinstatement of
16 defaulted pledges.
17 (4) ALLOCATION OF THE TRUST FUND.--Funds appropriated
18 to the trust fund shall be allocated by the Department of
19 Education in the following manner:
20 (a) For every year in which there is a legislative
21 appropriation to the trust fund, an equal amount the lesser of
22 the amount appropriated divided by the number of districts or
23 $10,000 must be reserved to provide each public school
24 district education foundation school board with an opportunity
25 to receive and match a challenge grant. The balance of the
26 funds shall be available for matching by any public school
27 district education foundation school board. Trust funds which
28 remain unmatched by contribution on March 1 of any year shall
29 also be available for matching by any public school district
30 education foundation or by the Department of Education Florida
31 Education Foundation school board. The commissioner shall
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1 adopt procedures providing all public school district
2 education foundations school boards with an opportunity to
3 apply for excess trust funds prior to awarding such funds.
4 However, no public school district education foundation school
5 board may receive more than its percentage of the total
6 full-time equivalent enrollment or 15 percent, whichever is
7 greater, of the funds appropriated to the trust fund for that
8 fiscal year.
9 (b) Challenge grants shall be proportionately
10 allocated from the trust fund on the basis of matching each $4
11 of state funds with $6 of private funds. To be eligible for
12 matching, a minimum of $4,500 must be raised from private
13 sources.
14 (c) Funds sufficient to provide the match shall be
15 transferred from the state trust fund to the public school
16 education foundation upon notification that a proportionate
17 amount has been received and deposited by the foundation in
18 its own trust fund.
19 (b) Contributions made after June 1, 1995, for a
20 specific purpose other than those enumerated in paragraphs (c)
21 and (d) shall be matched in the following manner:
22 1. Each school district that raises a contribution of
23 at least $50,000, but no more than $99,000, from a private
24 source shall receive a matching grant equal to 25 percent of
25 the private contribution.
26 2. Each school district that raises a contribution of
27 at least $100,000, but no more than $599,999, from a private
28 source shall receive a matching grant equal to 50 percent of
29 the private contribution.
30 3. Each school district that raises a contribution of
31 at least $600,000, but no more than $1 million, from a private
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1 source shall receive a matching grant equal to 70 percent of
2 the private contribution.
3 4. Each school district that raises a contribution in
4 excess of $1 million, but no more than $1.5 million, from a
5 private source shall receive a matching grant equal to 75
6 percent of the private contribution.
7 5. Each school district that raises a contribution in
8 excess of $1.5 million, but no more than $2 million, from a
9 private source shall receive a matching grant equal to 80
10 percent of the private contribution.
11 6. Each school district that raises a contribution in
12 excess of $2 million from a private source shall receive a
13 matching grant equal to 100 percent of the private
14 contribution.
15 (c) Contributions made after June 1, 1995, for the
16 establishment of an endowment to be used at the discretion of
17 the district school board for improving schools and academic
18 achievement within the school district, which is not
19 restricted for use by a specific school, discipline, or
20 program, and which is at least in the amount of $100,000,
21 shall be matched at the rate of 70 percent of the private
22 contribution.
23 (d) Contributions made after June 1, 1995, for the
24 establishment of an endowment to be used at the discretion of
25 the district school board for improving schools and academic
26 achievement within the school district, which is not
27 restricted for use by a specific school, discipline, or
28 program, and which is in excess of the amount of $1 million,
29 shall be matched pursuant to paragraph (b).
30 (e) Pledged contributions shall be eligible for
31 matching pursuant to this section, provided that such
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1 contributions shall not be eligible for matching prior to the
2 actual collection of the total contribution.
3 (d) Matching grants shall be distributed on the last
4 day of each calendar quarter. If the total of the amounts to
5 be distributed in any quarter pursuant to this subsection
6 exceeds the amount of funds remaining from specific
7 appropriations made for the implementation of this section,
8 all grants for that quarter shall be proportionately reduced
9 so that the total of matching grants distributed does not
10 exceed available appropriations.
11 (5) DISTRICT-LEVEL ADMINISTRATION.--
12 (a) Each public school district education foundation
13 school board participating in the Florida School Improvement
14 and Academic Achievement Trust Fund shall separately account
15 for all funds received pursuant to this section, including
16 interest, and may establish its own school improvement and
17 academic achievement trust fund as a depository for the a
18 District School Improvement and Academic Achievement Trust
19 Fund. The sources of funds shall be private contributions,
20 state matching funds, and interest earnings on investments of
21 such funds. State matching funds shall be transferred to the
22 public school district education foundation upon notification
23 that the foundation district school board direct-support
24 organization has received and deposited a private contribution
25 which meets the criteria for matching as provided in this
26 section. The public school district education foundations are
27 responsible for the maintenance, investment, and
28 administration of their school improvement and academic
29 improvement trust funds.
30 (b) The public school district education foundation
31 direct-support organization serving the district school board
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1 shall be responsible for soliciting and receiving
2 contributions to be deposited and matched with challenge
3 grants for establishing endowments for school improvement and
4 academic achievement within the school district.
5 (c) Each public school district education foundation
6 school board shall be responsible for proper expenditure of
7 the funds received pursuant to this section.
8 (6) PROHIBITED USES.--The donations, state matching
9 funds, or proceeds from endowments established pursuant to
10 this section shall be used at the discretion of the public
11 school district education foundation for improving schools and
12 academic achievement within the school district and shall not
13 be expended for the construction of facilities or for the
14 support of interscholastic athletics. No public school
15 district education foundation school board or district school
16 board direct-support organization shall accept or purchase
17 facilities for which the state will be asked for operating
18 funds unless the Legislature has granted prior approval for
19 such acquisition.
20 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1 of the
21 year in which enacted.
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24 HOUSE SUMMARY
25
Revises funding, allocation, and district-level
26 administration of Florida School Improvement and Academic
Achievement Trust Fund grants. Provides that public
27 school district education foundations shall receive and
match challenge grants.
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