Florida Senate - 2012                                    SB 1706
       
       
       
       By Senator Gibson
       
       
       
       
       1-01302-12                                            20121706__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to the accountability of private
    3         schools participating in state school choice
    4         scholarship programs; amending s. 1002.421, F.S.;
    5         requiring participating private schools to annually
    6         submit to the Department of Education financially
    7         audited statements; providing an effective date.
    8  
    9  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   10  
   11         Section 1. Paragraph (f) of subsection (2) of section
   12  1002.421, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   13         1002.421 Accountability of private schools participating in
   14  state school choice scholarship programs.—
   15         (2) A private school participating in a scholarship program
   16  must be a Florida private school as defined in s. 1002.01(2),
   17  must be registered in accordance with s. 1002.42, and must:
   18         (f) Demonstrate fiscal soundness and accountability by:
   19         1. Being in operation for at least 3 school years or
   20  obtaining a surety bond or letter of credit for the amount equal
   21  to the scholarship funds for any quarter and filing the surety
   22  bond or letter of credit with the department.
   23         2. Requiring the parent of each scholarship student to
   24  personally restrictively endorse the scholarship warrant to the
   25  school. The school may not act as attorney in fact for the
   26  parent of a scholarship student under the authority of a power
   27  of attorney executed by such parent, or under any other
   28  authority, to endorse scholarship warrants on behalf of such
   29  parent.
   30         3. Annually submitting to the department the financial
   31  statements of the school, which must have received a financial
   32  audit as defined in s. 11.45.
   33         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.