Florida Senate - 2020 SENATOR AMENDMENT
Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1220
Ì9038726Î903872
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
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Senator Lee moved the following:
1 Senate Amendment (with directory and title amendments)
2
3 Delete lines 202 - 307
4 and insert:
5 students annually on a first-come, first-served basis beginning
6 in with the 2019-2020 school year. Beginning in the 2020-2021
7 school year, the maximum number of students participating in the
8 scholarship program under this section shall may annually
9 increase by 1.0 0.25 percent of the state’s total public school
10 student enrollment.
11 (b) The scholarship amount provided to a student for any
12 single school year shall be for tuition and fees for an eligible
13 private school, not to exceed annual limits, which shall be
14 determined in accordance with this paragraph. The calculated
15 amount for a student to attend an eligible private school shall
16 be based upon the grade level and school district in which the
17 student was assigned as 95 percent of the funds per unweighted
18 full-time equivalent in the Florida Education Finance Program
19 for a student in the basic program established pursuant to s.
20 1011.62(1)(c)1., plus a per-full-time equivalent share of funds
21 for all categorical programs, except for the Exceptional Student
22 Education Guaranteed Allocation and the Teacher Salary Increase
23 Allocation.
24 Section 2. Subsection (3), paragraphs (e) and (f) of
25 subsection (6), and paragraph (a) of subsection (11) of section
26 1002.395, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
27 1002.395 Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program.—
28 (3) PROGRAM; INITIAL SCHOLARSHIP ELIGIBILITY.—
29 (a) The Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program is
30 established.
31 (b) A student is eligible for a Florida tax credit
32 scholarship under this section if the student meets one or more
33 of the following criteria:
34 1. The student is on the direct certification list or the
35 student’s household income level does not exceed 260 185 percent
36 of the federal poverty level; or
37 2. The student is currently placed, or during the previous
38 state fiscal year was placed, in foster care or in out-of-home
39 care as defined in s. 39.01.
40 3. The student’s household income level is greater than 185
41 percent of the federal poverty level but does not exceed 260
42 percent of the federal poverty level.
43
44 Priority must be given to a student whose household income level
45 does not exceed 185 percent of the federal poverty level or who
46 is in foster care or out-of-home care. A student who initially
47 receives a scholarship based on eligibility under this paragraph
48 subparagraph (b)2. remains eligible to participate until he or
49 she the student graduates from high school or attains the age of
50 21 years, whichever occurs first, regardless of the student’s
51 household income level. A student who initially received a
52 scholarship based on income eligibility before the 2019-2020
53 school year remains eligible to participate until he or she
54 graduates from high school, attains the age of 21 years, or the
55 student’s household income level exceeds 260 percent of the
56 federal poverty level, whichever occurs first. A sibling of a
57 student who is participating in the scholarship program under
58 this subsection is eligible for a scholarship if the student
59 resides in the same household as the sibling.
60 (6) OBLIGATIONS OF ELIGIBLE NONPROFIT SCHOLARSHIP-FUNDING
61 ORGANIZATIONS.—An eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding
62 organization:
63 (e) Must give first priority to eligible renewal students
64 who received a full-time scholarship from an eligible nonprofit
65 scholarship-funding organization or from the State of Florida
66 during the previous school year. The eligible nonprofit
67 scholarship-funding organization must fully apply and exhaust
68 all funds available under this section and s. 1002.40(11)(i) for
69 renewal scholarship awards before awarding any initial
70 scholarships Beginning in the 2016-2017 school year, an eligible
71 nonprofit scholarship-funding organization shall give priority
72 to new applicants whose household income levels do not exceed
73 185 percent of the federal poverty level or who are in foster
74 care or out-of-home care.
75 (f) Must provide a renewal or initial scholarship to an
76 eligible student on a first-come, first-served basis unless the
77 student qualifies for priority pursuant to paragraph (e). Each
78 eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization must refer
79 any student eligible for a scholarship pursuant to this section
80 who did not receive a renewal or initial scholarship based
81 solely on the lack of available funds under this section and s.
82 1002.40(11)(i) to another eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding
83 organization that may have funds available.
84
85 Information and documentation provided to the Department of
86 Education and the Auditor General relating to the identity of a
87 taxpayer that provides an eligible contribution under this
88 section shall remain confidential at all times in accordance
89 with s. 213.053.
90 (11) SCHOLARSHIP AMOUNT AND PAYMENT.—
91 (a) The scholarship amount provided to any student for any
92 single school year by an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding
93 organization from eligible contributions shall be for total
94 costs authorized under paragraph (6)(d), not to exceed annual
95 limits, which shall be determined as follows:
96 1. For a student who received a scholarship in the 2018
97 2019 school year, who remains eligible, and who is enrolled in
98 an eligible private school, the amount shall be the greater
99 amount calculated pursuant to subparagraph 2. or a percentage of
100 the unweighted FTE funding amount for the 2018-2019 state fiscal
101 year and thereafter as follows:
102 a. Eighty-eight percent for a student enrolled in
103 kindergarten through grade 5.
104 b. Ninety-two percent for a student enrolled in grade 6
105 through grade 8.
106 c. Ninety-six percent for a student enrolled in grade 9
107 through grade 12.
108 2. For students initially eligible in the 2019-2020 school
109 year or thereafter, the calculated amount for a student to
110 attend an eligible private school shall be based upon the grade
111 level and school district in which the student resides as 95
112 percent of the funds per unweighted full-time equivalent in the
113 Florida Education Finance Program for a student in the basic
114 program established pursuant to s. 1011.62(1)(c)1., plus a per
115 full-time equivalent share of funds for all categorical
116 programs, except for the Exceptional Student Education
117 Guaranteed Allocation and the Teacher Salary Increase
118 Allocation.
119 3. The scholarship amount awarded to a student enrolled in
120 a Florida public school in which a student is enrolled and that
121 is different from the school to which the student was assigned
122 or in a lab school as defined in s. 1002.32, is limited to $750.
123 Section 3. Paragraphs (a) and (i) of subsection (11) of
124 section 1002.40, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
125 1002.40 The Hope Scholarship Program.—
126 (11) FUNDING AND PAYMENT.—
127 (a) For students initially eligible in the 2019-2020 school
128 year or thereafter, the calculated amount for a student to
129 attend an eligible private school shall be based upon the grade
130 level and school district in which the student was assigned as
131 95 percent of the funds per unweighted full-time equivalent in
132 the Florida Education Finance Program for a student in the basic
133 program established pursuant to s. 1011.62(1)(c)1., plus a per
134 full-time equivalent share of funds for all categorical
135 programs, except for the Exceptional Student Education
136 Guaranteed Allocation and the Teacher Salary Increase
137 Allocation.
138 (i) Notwithstanding s. 1002.395(6)(j)2., no more than 5
139 percent of net eligible contributions may be carried forward to
140 the following state fiscal year by an eligible scholarship
141 funding organization. For audit purposes, all amounts carried
142 forward must be specifically identified for individual students
143 by student name and by the name of the school to which the
144 student is admitted, subject to the requirements of ss. 1002.21
145 and 1002.22 and 20 U.S.C. s. 1232g, and the applicable rules and
146 regulations issued pursuant to such requirements. Any amounts
147 carried forward shall be expended for annual scholarships or
148 partial-year scholarships in the following state fiscal year.
149 Net eligible contributions remaining on June 30 of each year
150 which are in excess of the 5 percent that may be carried forward
151 shall be transferred to other eligible nonprofit scholarship
152 funding organizations participating in the Hope Scholarship
153 Program to provide scholarships for eligible students. All
154 transferred funds must be deposited by each eligible nonprofit
155 scholarship-funding organization receiving such funds into the
156 scholarship account of eligible students. All transferred
157 amounts received by an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding
158 organization must be separately disclosed in the annual
159 financial audit requirement under s. 1002.395(6)(m). If no other
160 eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization participates
161 in the Hope Scholarship Program, net eligible contributions in
162 excess of the 5 percent may be used to fund scholarships for
163 students eligible under s. 1002.395 only after fully exhausting
164 all contributions made in support of scholarships under that
165 section in accordance with the priority established in s.
166 1002.395(6)(e) before awarding any initial scholarships s.
167 1002.395(3).
168
169 ====== D I R E C T O R Y C L A U S E A M E N D M E N T ======
170 And the directory clause is amended as follows:
171 Delete line 45
172 and insert:
173 and (7), paragraph (c) of subsection (8), and paragraphs (a) and
174 (b) of
175
176 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
177 And the title is amended as follows:
178 Delete lines 21 - 35
179 and insert:
180 creating a new exception for scholarship funding for
181 the Family Empowerment Scholarship; amending s.
182 1002.395, F.S.; revising eligibility criteria for the
183 Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program and applying
184 the criteria only to initial eligibility; requiring
185 that priority be given to students whose household
186 income levels do not exceed a specified amount or who
187 are in foster care or out-of-home care; requiring
188 scholarship-funding organizations to prioritize
189 renewal scholarships over initial scholarships;
190 requiring a scholarship-funding organization to refer
191 students who did not receive a scholarship because of
192 lack of funds to another scholarship-funding
193 organization; providing an exception from a funding
194 formula under the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship
195 Program; amending s. 1002.40, F.S.; providing an
196 exception from funding formulas under the Hope
197 Scholarship Program; requiring scholarship-funding
198 organizations to use excess contributions to fund
199 scholarships for specified students under certain
200 conditions; providing