House Bill 4491e1

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                                      HB 4491, First Engrossed/ntc



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to trust funds; creating the

  3         Florida School District Review Trust Fund, to

  4         be administered by the Office of Program Policy

  5         Analysis and Government Accountability;

  6         providing for source of funds; directing the

  7         office to use the trust fund to pay the cost of

  8         best financial management practices reviews;

  9         providing for refunds to school districts;

10         providing for future review and termination or

11         re-creation of the trust fund; providing for

12         annual carryforward of funds; amending s.

13         230.23025, F.S.; providing for the deposit of

14         funds from school districts; providing an

15         effective date.

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

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19         Section 1.  The Florida School District Review Trust

20  Fund is created, to be administered by the Office of Program

21  Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA). Funds

22  must be credited to the trust fund as provided by s.

23  230.23025, Florida Statutes, and as otherwise appropriated by

24  the Legislature for the purposes set forth in that section.

25         Section 2.  OPPAGA shall use the funds deposited in the

26  trust fund to pay costs of conducting best financial

27  management practices reviews, or reviews of components of the

28  best practices, in school districts under s. 230.23025,

29  Florida Statutes. Funds may be expended to pay the expenses of

30  reviews conducted by OPPAGA, by the Auditor General, or by

31  private consultants at the discretion of the director of


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                                      HB 4491, First Engrossed/ntc



  1  OPPAGA. The expenses may include professional services, travel

  2  expenses of OPPAGA and the Auditor General, and any other

  3  necessary expenses incurred as part of a complete or component

  4  best practices review. OPPAGA may refund to a school district

  5  any portion of funds contributed by the school district that

  6  OPPAGA determines are not needed to conduct the complete or

  7  component best practices review requested by the district.

  8         Section 3.  (1)  In accordance with s. 19(f)(2), Art.

  9  III of the State Constitution, the Florida School District

10  Review Trust Fund, unless terminated sooner, is terminated on

11  July 1, 2002.

12         (2)  Before the regular legislative session immediately

13  preceding the date on which the trust fund is scheduled to be

14  terminated, OPPAGA shall recommend to the President of the

15  Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives whether

16  the trust fund should be allowed to terminate or should be

17  re-created. If the trust fund is terminated by the

18  Legislature, OPPAGA must pay any outstanding debts or

19  obligations of the trust fund as soon as practicable, and the

20  Comptroller must close out and remove the trust fund from the

21  various state accounting systems, using generally accepted

22  accounting practices concerning warrants outstanding, assets,

23  and liabilities.

24         (3)  Notwithstanding s. 216.301, Florida Statutes, and

25  pursuant to s. 216.351, Florida Statutes, any balance in the

26  trust fund at the end of any fiscal year shall remain in the

27  trust fund at the end of the year and be available for

28  carrying out the purposes of the trust fund.

29         Section 4.  Subsection (2) of section 230.23025,

30  Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

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                                      HB 4491, First Engrossed/ntc



  1         230.23025  Best financial management practices;

  2  standards; reviews; designation of districts.--

  3         (2)  School districts may, by a unanimous vote of the

  4  membership of the school board, apply to OPPAGA for financial

  5  management practice reviews. OPPAGA shall prioritize districts

  6  for review based on their growth rates and demonstrated need

  7  for review. The director of OPPAGA may, at his or her

  8  discretion, contract with private consultants to perform part

  9  or all of the review of any district. Districts applying for

10  review shall contribute 50 percent of review costs, unless

11  funding for the entire cost of the review is specifically

12  provided by the Legislature or the district has had a

13  performance review pursuant to ss. 11.515 and 230.2302. All

14  moneys contributed by any school district under this section

15  toward the cost of a complete or component best financial

16  management practices review of the district shall be deposited

17  into the Florida School District Review Trust Fund

18  administered by OPPAGA.

19         Section 5.  This act shall take effect July 1, 1998.

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