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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | 2023 -- H 6330 |
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| 6 | 6 | | ======== |
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| 7 | 7 | | LC002860 |
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| 8 | 8 | | ======== |
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| 9 | 9 | | S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D |
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| 10 | 10 | | IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 11 | 11 | | JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023 |
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| 12 | 12 | | ____________ |
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| 13 | 13 | | |
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| 14 | 14 | | A N A C T |
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| 15 | 15 | | RELATING TO EDUCATION – FOUNDATION LEVEL SCHOOL SUPPORT |
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| 16 | 16 | | Introduced By: Representatives McNamara, Shekarchi, Bennett, Solomon, Vella- |
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| 17 | 17 | | Wilkinson, and Shanley |
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| 18 | 18 | | Date Introduced: April 26, 2023 |
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| 19 | 19 | | Referred To: House Finance |
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| 20 | 20 | | |
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| 21 | 21 | | |
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| 22 | 22 | | It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
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| 23 | 23 | | SECTION 1. Section 16-7-39 and 16-7-40 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-7 entitled 1 |
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| 24 | 24 | | "Foundation Level School Support [See Title 16 Chapter 97 — The Rhode Island Board of 2 |
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| 25 | 25 | | Education Act]" are hereby amended to read as follows: 3 |
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| 26 | 26 | | 16-7-39. Computation of school housing-aid ratio. 4 |
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| 27 | 27 | | For each community, the percent of state aid for school housing costs shall be computed in 5 |
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| 28 | 28 | | the following manner: 6 |
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| 29 | 29 | | (1) The adjusted equalized weighted assessed valuation for the district is divided by the 7 |
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| 30 | 30 | | resident average daily membership for the district (grades twelve (12) and below); (2) The adjusted 8 |
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| 31 | 31 | | equalized weighted assessed valuation for the state is divided by the resident average daily 9 |
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| 32 | 32 | | membership for the state (grades twelve (12) and below); (1) is then divided by (2) and the resultant 10 |
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| 33 | 33 | | ratio is multiplied by a factor currently set at sixty-two percent (62%) which represents the 11 |
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| 34 | 34 | | approximate average district share of school support; the resulting product is then subtracted from 12 |
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| 35 | 35 | | one hundred percent (100%) to yield the housing aid share ratio, provided that in no case shall the 13 |
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| 36 | 36 | | ratio be less than thirty percent (30%). Provided, that effective July 1, 2010, and annually at the 14 |
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| 37 | 37 | | start of each fiscal year thereafter, the thirty percent (30%) floor on said housing-aid share shall be 15 |
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| 38 | 38 | | increased by five percent (5%) increments each year until said floor on the housing-aid share ratio 16 |
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| 39 | 39 | | reaches a minimum of not less than forty percent (40%). This provision shall apply only to school 17 |
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| 40 | 40 | | housing projects completed after June 30, 2010, that received approval from the board of regents 18 |
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| 41 | 41 | | prior to June 30, 2012. Provided further, for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2012, and for 19 |
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| 42 | 42 | | |
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| 43 | 43 | | |
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| 44 | 44 | | LC002860 - Page 2 of 7 |
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| 45 | 45 | | subsequent fiscal years, the minimum housing aid share shall be thirty-five percent (35%) for all 1 |
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| 46 | 46 | | projects receiving council on elementary and secondary education approval after June 30, 2012. 2 |
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| 47 | 47 | | The resident average daily membership shall be determined in accordance with § 16-7-22(1). 3 |
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| 48 | 48 | | (2) No district shall receive a combined total of more than twenty (20) incentive percentage 4 |
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| 49 | 49 | | points for projects that commence construction by December 30, 2023 2024, and five (5) incentive 5 |
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| 50 | 50 | | points for projects that commence construction thereafter; provided further, these caps shall be in 6 |
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| 51 | 51 | | addition to amounts received under §§ 16-7-40(a)(1) and 16-7-40(a)(2). Furthermore, a district’s 7 |
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| 52 | 52 | | share shall not be decreased by more than half of its regular share irrespective of the number of 8 |
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| 53 | 53 | | incentive points received nor shall a district’s state share increase by more than half of its regular 9 |
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| 54 | 54 | | share, including amounts received under §§ 16-7-40(a)(1) and 16-7-40(a)(2), irrespective of the 10 |
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| 55 | 55 | | number of incentive points received. 11 |
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| 56 | 56 | | 16-7-40. Increased school housing ratio. 12 |
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| 57 | 57 | | (a)(1) In the case of regional school districts, the school housing aid ratio shall be increased 13 |
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| 58 | 58 | | by two percent (2%) for each grade so consolidated. 14 |
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| 59 | 59 | | (2) Regional school districts undertaking renovation project(s) shall receive an increased 15 |
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| 60 | 60 | | share ratio of four percent (4%) for those specific project(s) only, in addition to the combined share 16 |
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| 61 | 61 | | ratio calculated in § 16-7-39 and this subsection. 17 |
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| 62 | 62 | | (b) In the case of projects undertaken by districts specifically for the purposes of school 18 |
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| 63 | 63 | | safety and security, the school housing aid share ratio shall be increased by five percent (5%) for 19 |
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| 64 | 64 | | these specific projects only, in the calculation of school housing aid. The increased share ratio shall 20 |
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| 65 | 65 | | continue to be applied for as long as the project(s) receives state housing aid. In order to qualify for 21 |
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| 66 | 66 | | the increased share ratio, seventy-five percent (75%) of the project costs must be specifically 22 |
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| 67 | 67 | | directed to school safety and security measures. The council on elementary and secondary 23 |
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| 68 | 68 | | education shall promulgate rules and regulations for the administration and operation of this 24 |
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| 69 | 69 | | section. 25 |
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| 70 | 70 | | (c) For purposes of addressing health and safety deficiencies as defined by the school 26 |
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| 71 | 71 | | building authority, including the remediation of hazardous materials, the school housing aid ratio 27 |
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| 72 | 72 | | shall be increased by five percent (5%) so long as the construction of the project commences by 28 |
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| 73 | 73 | | December 30, 2023 2024, is completed by December 30, 2028 2029, and a two hundred fifty 29 |
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| 74 | 74 | | million dollar ($250,000,000) general obligation bond is approved on the November 2018 ballot. 30 |
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| 75 | 75 | | In order to qualify for the increased share ratio, twenty-five percent (25%) of the project costs or a 31 |
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| 76 | 76 | | minimum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) must be specifically directed to this purpose. 32 |
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| 77 | 77 | | (d) For purposes of educational enhancement, including projects devoted to the 33 |
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| 78 | 78 | | enhancement of early childhood education and career and technical education, the school housing 34 |
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| 79 | 79 | | |
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| 80 | 80 | | |
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| 81 | 81 | | LC002860 - Page 3 of 7 |
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| 82 | 82 | | aid ratio shall be increased by five percent (5%) so long as construction of the project commences 1 |
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| 83 | 83 | | by December 30, 2023 2024, is completed by December 30, 2028 2029, and a two hundred fifty 2 |
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| 84 | 84 | | million dollar ($250,000,000) general obligation bond is approved on the November 2018 ballot. 3 |
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| 85 | 85 | | In order to qualify for the increased share ratio, twenty-five percent (25%) of the project costs or a 4 |
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| 86 | 86 | | minimum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) must be specifically directed to these 5 |
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| 87 | 87 | | purposes. 6 |
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| 88 | 88 | | (e) For replacement of a facility that has a facilities condition index of sixty-five percent 7 |
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| 89 | 89 | | (65%) or higher, the school housing ratio shall be increased by five percent (5%) so long as 8 |
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| 90 | 90 | | construction of the project commences by December 30, 2023 2024, is completed by December 30, 9 |
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| 91 | 91 | | 2028 2029, does not receive a bonus pursuant to subsection (f) or subsection (g), and a two hundred 10 |
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| 92 | 92 | | fifty million dollar ($250,000,000) general obligation bond is approved on the November 2018 11 |
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| 93 | 93 | | ballot. In order to qualify for the increased share ratio, twenty-five percent (25%) of the project 12 |
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| 94 | 94 | | costs or a minimum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) must be specifically directed to 13 |
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| 95 | 95 | | this purpose. 14 |
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| 96 | 96 | | (f) For any new construction or renovation that increases the functional utilization of any 15 |
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| 97 | 97 | | facility from less than sixty percent (60%) to more than eighty percent (80%), including the 16 |
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| 98 | 98 | | consolidation of school buildings within or across districts, the school housing aid ratio shall be 17 |
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| 99 | 99 | | increased by five percent (5%) so long as construction of the project commences by December 30, 18 |
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| 100 | 100 | | 2023 2024, is completed by December 30, 2028 2029, and a two hundred fifty million dollar 19 |
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| 101 | 101 | | ($250,000,000) general obligation bond is approved on the November 2018 ballot. In order to 20 |
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| 102 | 102 | | qualify for the increased share ratio, twenty-five percent (25%) of the project costs or a minimum 21 |
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| 103 | 103 | | of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) must be specifically directed to this purpose. 22 |
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| 104 | 104 | | (g) For any new construction or renovation that decreases the functional utilization of any 23 |
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| 105 | 105 | | facility from more than one hundred twenty percent (120%) to between eighty-five percent (85%) 24 |
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| 106 | 106 | | to one hundred five percent (105%), the school housing ratio shall be increased by five percent 25 |
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| 107 | 107 | | (5%) so long as construction of the project commences by December 30, 2023 2024, is completed 26 |
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| 108 | 108 | | by December 30, 2028 2029, and a two hundred fifty million dollar ($250,000,000) general 27 |
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| 109 | 109 | | obligation bond is approved on the November 2018 ballot. In order to qualify for the increased 28 |
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| 110 | 110 | | share ratio, twenty-five percent (25%) of the project costs or a minimum of five hundred thousand 29 |
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| 111 | 111 | | dollars ($500,000) must be specifically directed to this purpose. 30 |
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| 112 | 112 | | (h) For consolidation of two (2) or more school buildings, within or across districts into 31 |
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| 113 | 113 | | one school building, the school housing aid ratio shall be increased by five percent (5%) so long as 32 |
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| 114 | 114 | | construction of the project commences by December 30, 2023 2024, is completed by December 30, 33 |
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| 115 | 115 | | 2028 2029, a two hundred fifty million dollar ($250,000,000) general obligation bond is approved 34 |
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| 116 | 116 | | |
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| 117 | 117 | | |
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| 118 | 118 | | LC002860 - Page 4 of 7 |
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| 119 | 119 | | on the November 2018 ballot, and does not receive a bonus pursuant to subsection (f) or subsection 1 |
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| 120 | 120 | | (g). In order to qualify for the increased share ratio, twenty-five percent (25%) of the project costs 2 |
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| 121 | 121 | | or a minimum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) must be specifically directed to this 3 |
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| 122 | 122 | | purpose. 4 |
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| 123 | 123 | | (i) Any regionalized and/or non-regionalized school district receiving an increased share 5 |
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| 124 | 124 | | ratio for a project approved prior to July 1, 2018, shall continue to receive the increased share ratio 6 |
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| 125 | 125 | | for as long as the project receives state housing aid. 7 |
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| 126 | 126 | | (j) The deadlines for construction and completion set forth in this section are not related to, 8 |
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| 127 | 127 | | or conditioned on, the two hundred fifty million dollar ($250,000,000) general obligation bond 9 |
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| 128 | 128 | | approved by state voters on the November 2022 ballot. Increased housing aid provided for in this 10 |
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| 129 | 129 | | section is funded from state bonds proceeds, annual state appropriations, and other sources. 11 |
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| 130 | 130 | | SECTION 2. Section 16-105-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-105 entitled "School 12 |
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| 131 | 131 | | Building Authority" is hereby amended to read as follows: 13 |
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| 132 | 132 | | 16-105-3. Roles and responsibilities. 14 |
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| 133 | 133 | | The school building authority roles and responsibilities shall include: 15 |
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| 134 | 134 | | (1) Management of a system with the goal of ensuring equitable and adequate school 16 |
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| 135 | 135 | | housing for all public school children in the state; 17 |
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| 136 | 136 | | (2) Prevention of the cost of school housing from interfering with the effective operation 18 |
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| 137 | 137 | | of the schools; 19 |
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| 138 | 138 | | (3) Management of school housing aid in accordance with statute; 20 |
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| 139 | 139 | | (4) Reviewing and making recommendations to the council on elementary and secondary 21 |
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| 140 | 140 | | education on necessity of school construction applications for state school housing aid and the 22 |
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| 141 | 141 | | school building authority capital fund, based on the recommendations of the school building 23 |
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| 142 | 142 | | authority advisory board; 24 |
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| 143 | 143 | | (5) Promulgating, managing, and maintaining school construction regulations, standards, 25 |
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| 144 | 144 | | and guidelines applicable to the school housing program, based on the recommendations of the 26 |
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| 145 | 145 | | school building authority advisory board, created in § 16-105-8. Said regulations shall require 27 |
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| 146 | 146 | | conformance with the minority business enterprise requirements set forth in § 37-14.1-6; 28 |
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| 147 | 147 | | (6) Developing a prequalification and review process for prime contractors, architects, and 29 |
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| 148 | 148 | | engineers seeking to bid on projects in excess of ten million dollars ($10,000,000) in total costs 30 |
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| 149 | 149 | | subject to inflation. Notwithstanding any general laws to the contrary, a prequalification shall be 31 |
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| 150 | 150 | | valid for a maximum of two (2) years from the date of issuance. Factors to be considered by the 32 |
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| 151 | 151 | | school building authority in granting a prequalification to prime contractors shall include, but not 33 |
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| 152 | 152 | | be limited to, the contractor’s history of completing complex projects on time and on budget, track 34 |
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| 153 | 153 | | |
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| 154 | 154 | | |
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| 155 | 155 | | LC002860 - Page 5 of 7 |
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| 156 | 156 | | record of compliance with applicable environmental and safety regulations, evidence that 1 |
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| 157 | 157 | | completed prior projects prioritized the facility’s future maintainability, and compliance with 2 |
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| 158 | 158 | | applicable requirements for the use of women and minority owned subcontractors; 3 |
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| 159 | 159 | | (i) At least annually, a list of prequalified contractors, architects, and engineers shall be 4 |
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| 160 | 160 | | publicly posted with all other program information; 5 |
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| 161 | 161 | | (7) Providing technical assistance and guidance to school districts on the necessity of 6 |
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| 162 | 162 | | school construction application process; 7 |
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| 163 | 163 | | (8) Providing technical advice and assistance, training, and education to cities, towns, 8 |
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| 164 | 164 | | and/or local education agencies and to general contractors, subcontractors, construction or project 9 |
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| 165 | 165 | | managers, designers and others in planning, maintenance, and establishment of school facility 10 |
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| 166 | 166 | | space; 11 |
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| 167 | 167 | | (9) Developing a project priority system, based on the recommendations of the school 12 |
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| 168 | 168 | | building authority advisory board, in accordance with school construction regulations for the school 13 |
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| 169 | 169 | | building authority capital fund, subject to review and, if necessary, to be revised on intervals not to 14 |
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| 170 | 170 | | exceed five (5) years. Project priorities shall include, but not be limited to, the following order of 15 |
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| 171 | 171 | | priorities: 16 |
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| 172 | 172 | | (i) Projects to replace or renovate a building that is structurally unsound or otherwise in a 17 |
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| 173 | 173 | | condition seriously jeopardizing the health and safety of school children where no alternative exists; 18 |
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| 174 | 174 | | (ii) Projects needed to prevent loss of accreditation; 19 |
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| 175 | 175 | | (iii) Projects needed for the replacement, renovation, or modernization of the HVAC 20 |
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| 176 | 176 | | system in any schoolhouse to increase energy conservation and decrease energy-related costs in 21 |
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| 177 | 177 | | said schoolhouse; 22 |
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| 178 | 178 | | (iv) Projects needed to replace or add to obsolete buildings in order to provide for a full 23 |
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| 179 | 179 | | range of programs consistent with state and approved local requirements; and 24 |
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| 180 | 180 | | (v) Projects needed to comply with mandatory, instructional programs; 25 |
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| 181 | 181 | | (10) Maintaining a current list of requested school projects and the priority given them; 26 |
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| 182 | 182 | | (11) Collecting and maintaining readily available data on all the public school facilities in 27 |
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| 183 | 183 | | the state; 28 |
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| 184 | 184 | | (12) Collecting, maintaining, and making publicly available quarterly progress reports of 29 |
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| 185 | 185 | | all ongoing school construction projects that shall include, at a minimum, the costs of the project 30 |
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| 186 | 186 | | and the time schedule of the project; 31 |
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| 187 | 187 | | (13) Recommending policies and procedures designed to reduce borrowing for school 32 |
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| 188 | 188 | | construction programs at both state and local levels; 33 |
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| 189 | 189 | | (14) At least every five (5) years, conducting a needs survey to ascertain the capital 34 |
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| 190 | 190 | | |
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| 191 | 191 | | |
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| 192 | 192 | | LC002860 - Page 6 of 7 |
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| 193 | 193 | | construction, reconstruction, maintenance, and other capital needs for schools in each district of the 1 |
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| 194 | 194 | | state, including public charter schools; 2 |
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| 195 | 195 | | (15) Developing a formal enrollment projection model or using projection models already 3 |
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| 196 | 196 | | available; 4 |
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| 197 | 197 | | (16) Encouraging local education agencies to investigate opportunities for the maximum 5 |
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| 198 | 198 | | utilization of space in and around the district; 6 |
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| 199 | 199 | | (17) Collecting and maintaining a clearinghouse of prototypical school plans that may be 7 |
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| 200 | 200 | | consulted by eligible applicants; 8 |
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| 201 | 201 | | (18) Retaining the services of consultants, as necessary, to effectuate the roles and 9 |
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| 202 | 202 | | responsibilities listed within this section; 10 |
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| 203 | 203 | | (19) No district shall receive a combined total of more than twenty (20) incentive 11 |
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| 204 | 204 | | percentage points for projects that commence construction by December 30, 2023 2024, and five 12 |
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| 205 | 205 | | (5) incentive points for projects that commence construction thereafter; provided further, these caps 13 |
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| 206 | 206 | | shall be in addition to amounts received under §§ 16-7-40(a)(1) and 16-7-40(a)(2). Furthermore, a 14 |
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| 207 | 207 | | district’s share shall not be decreased by more than half of its regular share irrespective of the 15 |
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| 208 | 208 | | number of incentive points received, nor shall a district’s state share increase by more than half of 16 |
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| 209 | 209 | | its regular share, including amounts received under §§ 16-7-40(a)(1) and 16-7-40(a)(2), irrespective 17 |
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| 210 | 210 | | of the number of incentive points received. Notwithstanding any provision of the general laws to 18 |
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| 211 | 211 | | the contrary, the reimbursement or aid received under this chapter or chapter 38.2 of title 45 shall 19 |
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| 212 | 212 | | not exceed one hundred percent (100%) of the sum of the total project costs plus interest costs. If 20 |
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| 213 | 213 | | a two hundred and fifty million dollar ($250,000,000) general obligation bond is approved on the 21 |
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| 214 | 214 | | November 2018 ballot, projects approved between May 1, 2015, and January 1, 2018, are eligible 22 |
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| 215 | 215 | | to receive incentive points (above and beyond what the project was awarded at the time of approval) 23 |
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| 216 | 216 | | pursuant to § 16-7-39 and § 16-7-40. Provided, however, any project approved during this time 24 |
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| 217 | 217 | | period with a project cost in excess of one million five hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000), 25 |
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| 218 | 218 | | which does not include an owner’s program manager and a commissioning agent, shall only be 26 |
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| 219 | 219 | | eligible to receive five (5) incentive points. Incentive points awarded pursuant to the provisions of 27 |
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| 220 | 220 | | this subsection shall only be applied to reimbursements occurring on or after July 1, 2018. Any 28 |
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| 221 | 221 | | project approved between May 1, 2015, and January 1, 2018, that is withdrawn and/or resubmitted 29 |
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| 222 | 222 | | for approval shall not be eligible for any incentive points. 30 |
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| 223 | 223 | | SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage. 31 |
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| 224 | 224 | | ======== |
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| 225 | 225 | | LC002860 |
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| 226 | 226 | | ======== |
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| 227 | 227 | | |
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| 228 | 228 | | |
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| 229 | 229 | | LC002860 - Page 7 of 7 |
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| 230 | 230 | | EXPLANATION |
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| 231 | 231 | | BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL |
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| 232 | 232 | | OF |
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| 233 | 233 | | A N A C T |
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| 234 | 234 | | RELATING TO EDUCATION – FOUNDATION LEVEL SCHOOL SUPPORT |
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| 235 | 235 | | *** |
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| 236 | 236 | | This act would amend provisions of state law that provide for increased housing aid for 1 |
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| 237 | 237 | | certain school building projects by extending the deadlines for commencement and completion of 2 |
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| 238 | 238 | | these school building projects by one year to December 30, 2024 and December 30, 2029, 3 |
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| 239 | 239 | | respectively. 4 |
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| 240 | 240 | | This act would take effect upon passage. 5 |
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| 241 | 241 | | ======== |
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| 242 | 242 | | LC002860 |
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| 243 | 243 | | ======== |
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