| 1 | Representative(s) Pickens offered the following: |
| 2 |
|
| 3 | Amendment (with title amendment) |
| 4 | Between line(s) 427 and 428 insert: |
| 5 | Section 8. Subsections (1) and (7) of section 1013.62, |
| 6 | Florida Statutes, are amended to read: |
| 7 | 1013.62 Charter schools capital outlay funding.-- |
| 8 | (1) In each year in which funds are appropriated for |
| 9 | charter school capital outlay purposes, the Commissioner of |
| 10 | Education shall allocate the funds among eligible charter |
| 11 | schools. To be eligible for a funding allocation, a charter |
| 12 | school must: |
| 13 | (a)1. Have been in operation for 3 or more years; |
| 14 | 2. Be an expanded feeder chain of a charter school within |
| 15 | the same school district that is currently receiving charter |
| 16 | school capital outlay funds; or |
| 17 | 3. Have been accredited by the Commission on Schools of |
| 18 | the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. |
| 19 | (b) Have financial stability for future operation as a |
| 20 | charter school. |
| 21 | (c) Have satisfactory student achievement based on state |
| 22 | accountability standards applicable to the charter school. |
| 23 | (d) Have received final approval from its sponsor pursuant |
| 24 | to s. 1002.33 for operation during that fiscal year. |
| 25 | (e) Serve students in facilities that are not provided by |
| 26 | the charter school's sponsor. |
| 27 |
|
| 28 | The first priority for charter school capital outlay funding |
| 29 | shall be to allocate to the charter schools that received |
| 30 | funding in the 2005-2006 fiscal year an allocation of the same |
| 31 | amount per capital outlay full-time equivalent student up to the |
| 32 | lesser of the actual number of capital outlay full-time |
| 33 | equivalent students in the current year or the capital outlay |
| 34 | full-time equivalent students in the 2005-2006 fiscal year. |
| 35 | After calculating the first priority, the second priority shall |
| 36 | be to allocate excess funds remaining in the appropriation in an |
| 37 | amount equal to the per capital outlay full-time equivalent |
| 38 | student amount in the first priority calculation to eligible |
| 39 | charter schools not included in the first priority calculation |
| 40 | and to schools in the first priority calculation with growth in |
| 41 | excess of the 2005-2006 capital outlay full-time equivalent |
| 42 | students. After calculating the first and second priorities, |
| 43 | excess funds remaining in the appropriation shall be allocated |
| 44 | to all eligible charter schools. A charter school's allocation |
| 45 | shall not exceed one-fifteenth of the cost per student station |
| 46 | specified in s. 1013.64(6)(b). Prior to the release of capital |
| 47 | outlay funds to a school district on behalf of the charter |
| 48 | school, the Department of Education shall ensure that the |
| 49 | district school board and the charter school governing board |
| 50 | enter into a written agreement that includes provisions for the |
| 51 | reversion of any unencumbered funds and all equipment and |
| 52 | property purchased with public education funds to the ownership |
| 53 | of the district school board, as provided for in subsection (3), |
| 54 | in the event that the school terminates operations. Any funds |
| 55 | recovered by the state shall be deposited in the General Revenue |
| 56 | Fund. A charter school is not eligible for a funding allocation |
| 57 | if it was created by the conversion of a public school and |
| 58 | operates in facilities provided by the charter school's sponsor |
| 59 | for a nominal fee or at no charge or if it is directly or |
| 60 | indirectly operated by the school district. Unless otherwise |
| 61 | provided in the General Appropriations Act, the funding |
| 62 | allocation for each eligible charter school shall be determined |
| 63 | by multiplying the school's projected student enrollment by one- |
| 64 | fifteenth of the cost-per-student station specified in s. |
| 65 | 1013.64(6)(b) for an elementary, middle, or high school, as |
| 66 | appropriate. If the funds appropriated are not sufficient, the |
| 67 | commissioner shall prorate the available funds among eligible |
| 68 | charter schools. However, no charter school or charter lab |
| 69 | school shall receive state charter school capital outlay funds |
| 70 | in excess of the one-fifteenth cost per student station formula |
| 71 | if the charter school's combination of state charter school |
| 72 | capital outlay funds, capital outlay funds calculated through |
| 73 | the reduction in the administrative fee provided in s. |
| 74 | 1002.33(20), and capital outlay funds allowed in s. |
| 75 | 1002.32(9)(e) and (h) exceeds the one-fifteenth cost per student |
| 76 | station formula. Funds shall be distributed on the basis of the |
| 77 | capital outlay full-time equivalent membership by grade level, |
| 78 | which shall be calculated by averaging the results of the second |
| 79 | and third enrollment surveys. The Department of Education shall |
| 80 | distribute capital outlay funds monthly, beginning in the first |
| 81 | quarter of the fiscal year, based on one-twelfth of the amount |
| 82 | the department reasonably expects the charter school to receive |
| 83 | during that fiscal year. The commissioner shall adjust |
| 84 | subsequent distributions as necessary to reflect each charter |
| 85 | school's actual student enrollment as reflected in the second |
| 86 | and third enrollment surveys. The commissioner shall establish |
| 87 | the intervals and procedures for determining the projected and |
| 88 | actual student enrollment of eligible charter schools. |
| 89 | (7) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, |
| 90 | beginning in the 2003-2004 fiscal year: |
| 91 | (a) If the appropriation for charter school capital outlay |
| 92 | funds is no greater than the 2002-2003 appropriation, the funds |
| 93 | shall be allocated according to the formula outlined in |
| 94 | subsection (1) to: |
| 95 | 1. The same schools that received funding in 2002-2003. |
| 96 | 2. Schools that are an expanded feeder pattern of schools |
| 97 | that received funding in 2002-2003. |
| 98 | 3. Schools that have an approved charter and are serving |
| 99 | students at the start of the 2003-2004 school year and either |
| 100 | incurred long-term financial obligations prior to January 31, |
| 101 | 2003, or began construction on educational facilities prior to |
| 102 | December 31, 2002. |
| 103 | (b) If the appropriation for charter school capital outlay |
| 104 | funds is less than the 2002-2003 appropriation, the funds shall |
| 105 | be prorated among the schools eligible in paragraph (a). |
| 106 | (c) If the appropriation for charter school capital outlay |
| 107 | funds is greater than the 2002-2003 appropriation, the amount of |
| 108 | funds provided in the 2002-2003 appropriation shall be allocated |
| 109 | according to paragraph (a). First priority for allocating the |
| 110 | amount in excess of the 2002-2003 appropriation shall be to |
| 111 | prorate the excess funds among the charter schools with long- |
| 112 | term debt or long-term lease to the extent that the initial |
| 113 | allocation is insufficient to provide one-fifteenth of the cost |
| 114 | per student station specified in s. 1013.64(6)(b), and second |
| 115 | priority shall be to other eligible charter schools. |
| 116 |
|
| 117 | ======= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ======= |
| 118 | Remove line(s) 20 and insert: |
| 119 | year final taxable value; amending s. 1013.62, F.S.; revising |
| 120 | charter school capital outlay funding eligibility criteria and |
| 121 | allocation of funds; amending s. 1013.64, F.S.; |