Senate Bill sb2428

    Florida Senate - 2007                                 SJR 2428

    By Senator Wise





    5-1105-07

  1                     Senate Joint Resolution

  2         A joint resolution proposing an amendment to

  3         Section 4 of Article IX of the State

  4         Constitution relating to school districts.

  5  

  6  Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

  7  

  8         That the following amendment to Section 4 of Article IX

  9  of the State Constitution is agreed to and shall be submitted

10  to the electors of this state for approval or rejection at the

11  next general election or at an earlier special election

12  specifically authorized by law for that purpose:

13                            ARTICLE IX

14                            EDUCATION

15         SECTION 4.  School districts; school boards.--

16         (a)  Each county shall constitute a school district;

17  provided, two or more contiguous counties, upon vote of the

18  electors of each county pursuant to law, may be combined into

19  one school district; and provided further that a county having

20  45,000 or more students in the district schools within the

21  county may be divided into two or more school districts, each

22  school district to have no fewer than 20,000 students, as

23  provided by law. In order to divide a county school district

24  under this subsection, and notwithstanding other provisions of

25  this constitution, a commission made up of residents of the

26  county shall be created by special law to draw school district

27  boundary lines, allocate assets, and provide for the

28  contractual obligations, debts, and bonded indebtedness of the

29  school district, all of which shall be subject to review and

30  approval by the circuit court for compliance with state and

31  federal law and subject to approval by a vote of the electors

                                  1

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






    Florida Senate - 2007                                 SJR 2428
    5-1105-07




 1  of the county. Funding for operation and capital outlay in

 2  school districts divided pursuant to this subsection shall be

 3  determined on a countywide basis and distributed to the school

 4  districts per student as provided by law, except that funds

 5  raised by voted millage for bonded indebtedness or local

 6  option sales taxes may be distributed per interlocal agreement

 7  between the school districts. Local school taxes in school

 8  districts divided pursuant to this subsection, including voted

 9  millage for bonded indebtedness, shall be levied on a

10  countywide basis as provided by law.

11         (b)  In each school district there shall be a school

12  board composed of five or more members chosen by vote of the

13  electors in a nonpartisan election for appropriately staggered

14  terms of four years, as provided by law.

15         (b)  The school board shall operate, control, and

16  supervise all free public schools within the school district

17  and determine the rate of school district taxes within the

18  limits prescribed herein. Two or more school districts may

19  operate and finance joint educational programs.

20         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be

21  placed on the ballot:

22                     CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

23                      ARTICLE IX, SECTION 4

24         AUTHORIZING THE DIVISION OF A COUNTY INTO TWO OR MORE

25  SCHOOL DISTRICTS.--Proposing an amendment to the State

26  Constitution to provide that counties having 45,000 or more

27  students may be divided into two or more school districts as

28  provided by law; to provide for the creation of a commission,

29  by special law, to draw school district boundary lines,

30  allocate assets, and provide for the contractual obligations,

31  debts, and bonded indebtedness of the school district, all of

                                  2

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






    Florida Senate - 2007                                 SJR 2428
    5-1105-07




 1  which shall be subject to judicial review and approval and

 2  voter approval; to provide that, except for voted millage for

 3  bonded indebtedness or local option sales taxes, school

 4  district funding shall be determined on a countywide basis and

 5  distributed as provided by law; and to provide that local

 6  school taxes, including voted millage for bonded indebtedness,

 7  shall be levied on a countywide basis as provided by law.

 8  

 9  

10  

11  

12  

13  

14  

15  

16  

17  

18  

19  

20  

21  

22  

23  

24  

25  

26  

27  

28  

29  

30  

31  

                                  3

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