| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to charter schools capital outlay funding; |
| 3 | amending s. 1013.62, F.S.; revising charter school |
| 4 | eligibility requirements for receipt of capital outlay |
| 5 | funding; providing an effective date. |
| 6 |
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| 7 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 8 |
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| 9 | Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section |
| 10 | 1013.62, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 11 | 1013.62 Charter schools capital outlay funding.-- |
| 12 | (1) In each year in which funds are appropriated for |
| 13 | charter school capital outlay purposes, the Commissioner of |
| 14 | Education shall allocate the funds among eligible charter |
| 15 | schools. To be eligible for a funding allocation, a charter |
| 16 | school must: |
| 17 | (a)1. Have been in operation for 3 or more years or be |
| 18 | governed by a governing board that has been in operation for 3 |
| 19 | or more years; |
| 20 | 2. Be an expanded feeder chain of a charter school within |
| 21 | the same school district that is currently receiving charter |
| 22 | school capital outlay funds; or |
| 23 | 3. Have been accredited by the Commission on Schools of |
| 24 | the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. |
| 25 |
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| 26 | The first priority for charter school capital outlay funding |
| 27 | shall be to allocate to the charter schools that received |
| 28 | funding in the 2005-2006 fiscal year an allocation of the same |
| 29 | amount per capital outlay full-time equivalent student up to the |
| 30 | lesser of the actual number of capital outlay full-time |
| 31 | equivalent students in the current year or the capital outlay |
| 32 | full-time equivalent students in the 2005-2006 fiscal year. |
| 33 | After calculating the first priority, the second priority shall |
| 34 | be to allocate excess funds remaining in the appropriation in an |
| 35 | amount equal to the per capital outlay full-time equivalent |
| 36 | student amount in the first priority calculation to eligible |
| 37 | charter schools not included in the first priority calculation |
| 38 | and to schools in the first priority calculation with growth in |
| 39 | excess of the 2005-2006 capital outlay full-time equivalent |
| 40 | students. After calculating the first and second priorities, |
| 41 | excess funds remaining in the appropriation shall be allocated |
| 42 | to all eligible charter schools. A charter school's allocation |
| 43 | shall not exceed one-fifteenth of the cost per student station |
| 44 | specified in s. 1013.64(6)(b). Prior to the release of capital |
| 45 | outlay funds to a school district on behalf of the charter |
| 46 | school, the Department of Education shall ensure that the |
| 47 | district school board and the charter school governing board |
| 48 | enter into a written agreement that includes provisions for the |
| 49 | reversion of any unencumbered funds and all equipment and |
| 50 | property purchased with public education funds to the ownership |
| 51 | of the district school board, as provided for in subsection (3), |
| 52 | in the event that the school terminates operations. Any funds |
| 53 | recovered by the state shall be deposited in the General Revenue |
| 54 | Fund. A charter school is not eligible for a funding allocation |
| 55 | if it was created by the conversion of a public school and |
| 56 | operates in facilities provided by the charter school's sponsor |
| 57 | for a nominal fee or at no charge or if it is directly or |
| 58 | indirectly operated by the school district. Unless otherwise |
| 59 | provided in the General Appropriations Act, the funding |
| 60 | allocation for each eligible charter school shall be determined |
| 61 | by multiplying the school's projected student enrollment by one- |
| 62 | fifteenth of the cost-per-student station specified in s. |
| 63 | 1013.64(6)(b) for an elementary, middle, or high school, as |
| 64 | appropriate. If the funds appropriated are not sufficient, the |
| 65 | commissioner shall prorate the available funds among eligible |
| 66 | charter schools. However, no charter school or charter lab |
| 67 | school shall receive state charter school capital outlay funds |
| 68 | in excess of the one-fifteenth cost per student station formula |
| 69 | if the charter school's combination of state charter school |
| 70 | capital outlay funds, capital outlay funds calculated through |
| 71 | the reduction in the administrative fee provided in s. |
| 72 | 1002.33(20), and capital outlay funds allowed in s. |
| 73 | 1002.32(9)(e) and (h) exceeds the one-fifteenth cost per student |
| 74 | station formula. Funds shall be distributed on the basis of the |
| 75 | capital outlay full-time equivalent membership by grade level, |
| 76 | which shall be calculated by averaging the results of the second |
| 77 | and third enrollment surveys. The Department of Education shall |
| 78 | distribute capital outlay funds monthly, beginning in the first |
| 79 | quarter of the fiscal year, based on one-twelfth of the amount |
| 80 | the department reasonably expects the charter school to receive |
| 81 | during that fiscal year. The commissioner shall adjust |
| 82 | subsequent distributions as necessary to reflect each charter |
| 83 | school's actual student enrollment as reflected in the second |
| 84 | and third enrollment surveys. The commissioner shall establish |
| 85 | the intervals and procedures for determining the projected and |
| 86 | actual student enrollment of eligible charter schools. |
| 87 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009. |