House Bill 0795

    Florida House of Representatives - 1999                 HB 795

        By Representative Sorensen






  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to natural disaster relief;

  3         providing relief to the Monroe County School

  4         District for certain declared natural disasters

  5         by holding the school district harmless with

  6         respect to its 1998-1999 FEFP appropriation.

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  8         WHEREAS, Monroe County suffered three natural disasters

  9  in 1998, the Groundhog Day tornadoes in February, Hurricane

10  Georges in September, and Tropical Storm Mitch in November,

11  each of which was declared a natural disaster by the President

12  of the United States, and

13         WHEREAS, the Monroe County district schools serve

14  children and adults throughout the county, and

15         WHEREAS, the Monroe County district schools have

16  endured damages to the physical plant facilities expected to

17  exceed $10 million, and

18         WHEREAS, the Monroe County district schools are

19  currently anticipating a loss of 350 to 400 students from the

20  student enrollment estimate approved by the Legislature for

21  the 1998-1999 school year, and

22         WHEREAS, this loss of students translates into the

23  potential loss of $1.5 million to $2.5 million from the

24  current year's operating budget, and

25         WHEREAS, no school district is in a position to

26  maintain services and recovery efforts from such natural

27  disasters without some financial relief and assistance, NOW,

28  THEREFORE,

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

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






    Florida House of Representatives - 1999                 HB 795

    729-102A-99






  1         Section 1.  The Monroe County School District shall be

  2  held harmless with respect to its FEFP appropriation for

  3  fiscal year 1998-1999, notwithstanding any change in estimated

  4  enrollment in the district for that fiscal year resulting from

  5  the three natural disasters that affected Monroe County in

  6  1998, which were presidentially declared natural disasters and

  7  which consisted of the Groundhog Day tornadoes in February,

  8  Hurricane Georges in September, and Tropical Storm Mitch in

  9  November of that year.

10         Section 2.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

11  law.

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14                          HOUSE SUMMARY

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      Provides relief to the Monroe County School District for
16    natural disasters that affected the county in 1998 by
      holding the school district harmless with respect to its
17    1998-1999 FEFP appropriation.

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