New Construction Funding Process - Leroy F.greene School Facilities Act Of 1998 - CA Education

Section § 17072.20

This law allows school districts in California that meet certain eligibility requirements to apply for funding for new construction at any time. The application should detail the state funding the district believes it can receive for buying land, site development, new building projects, or if they qualify for hardship assistance. The requested amount will be adjusted if any related fees have been collected. The application will be verified and potentially adjusted by the board before approval.

(a) An applicant school district that has been determined by the board to meet the eligibility requirements for new construction funding set forth in Article 2 (commencing with Section 17071.10) or Article 3 (commencing with Section 17071.75) may submit at any time a request to the board for a project apportionment for all or a portion of the funding for which the school district is eligible.

(b) The application shall include, but shall not be limited to, the school district’s determination of the amount of state funding that the district is otherwise eligible for relating to site acquisition, site development, new construction, and hardship funding provided pursuant to Article 8 (commencing with Section 17075.10), if any. The amount shall be reduced by the amount of the alternative fee collected pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 65995.7 of the Government Code if a reimbursement election or agreement pursuant to Section 65995.7 of the Government Code is not in effect.

school district funding new construction eligibility site acquisition site development funding hardship funding alternative fee reduction reimbursement election project apportionment funding application process board verification adjustment of application

(Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 935, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 2003.)

Section § 17072.25

This law section outlines how the board must create rules to rank applications for new construction funding for schools. When there isn't enough money to cover all approved projects, or when available state bond proceeds hit $300 million, the ranking system kicks in. It prioritizes districts with more students lacking permanent school facilities. The board can also consider other fair distribution factors but these can't heavily influence the rankings. This only applies to bond-funded projects approved before 2002.

(a) The board shall adopt regulations to develop a mechanism to rank approved applications for new construction funding. This mechanism shall be used to determine the priority of approved applications when either of the following conditions are met:

(1) The total state funds necessary for funding all approved projects pursuant to this chapter exceed the total state funds in the fund for allocation pursuant to this chapter.

(2) The actual amount of unallocated proceeds of state bonds available on or after July 1, 2000, for new construction for the purposes of this chapter is at three hundred million dollars ($300,000,000).

(b) The ranking mechanism shall allocate priority points based upon the percentages of currently and projected unhoused pupils relative to the total population of the applicant district or attendance area and the total number of currently and projected unhoused pupils in an applicant district or attendance area.

(c) The board may award priority points based on other factors that in its judgment result in the most equitable distribution of resources among applicants. The additional factors may not constitute greater than a 10-percent weight in the overall priority ranking.

(d) This section shall apply only to projects funded with the proceeds of state bonds approved by the voters prior to January 1, 2002.

new construction funding ranking mechanism priority points unhoused pupils equitable distribution state bonds allocation school construction district population fund allocation project ranking resource distribution bond proceeds state funds 2002 bond projects

(Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 33, Sec. 12. Effective April 29, 2002.)

Section § 17072.30

This law section outlines how funds will be distributed to school districts for construction projects, provided certain conditions are met. Before state funds are provided, the project must be approved by the Department of General Services, and the school district must confirm that they have spent or will spend matching funds from local sources. The amount of local funds needed depends on the district's score, with lower scores requiring a higher local contribution and a lower state contribution.

(a) Subject to the availability of funds, the board shall apportion funds to an eligible school district only upon the approval of the project by the Department of General Services pursuant to the Field Act, as defined in Section 17281, and certification by the school district that the required matching funds from local sources have been expended by the district for the project, or have been deposited in the county fund, or will be expended by the district by the time the project is completed, in an amount at least equal to the proposed apportionment pursuant to this chapter, before release of the state funds.

(b) The board shall adjust a school district’s required local contribution pursuant to this section and the school district’s associated state contribution required pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with Section 17072.10), as follows:

(1) For a school district determined to have a score of more than 10 points pursuant to Section 17070.59, the school district’s required local matching funds pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be 45 percent and the associated state contribution pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with Section 17072.10) shall be 55 percent.

(2) For a school district determined to have a score of 9 or 10 points pursuant to Section 17070.59, the school district’s required local matching funds pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be 47 percent and the associated state contribution pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with Section 17072.10) shall be 53 percent.

(3) For a school district determined to have a score of eight points pursuant to Section 17070.59, the school district’s required local matching funds pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be 48 percent and the associated state contribution pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with Section 17072.10) shall be 52 percent.

(4) For a school district determined to have a score of six or seven points pursuant to Section 17070.59, the school district’s required local matching funds pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be 49 percent and the associated state contribution pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with Section 17072.10) shall be 51 percent.

(5) For a school district determined to have a score of less than six points pursuant to Section 17070.59, the required local matching funds pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be 50 percent and the associated state contribution pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with Section 17072.10) shall be 50 percent.

school construction funding Department of General Services local matching funds state contributions Field Act approval district scores fund apportionment financial requirements project approval local source expenditure matching funds criteria county fund deposit score-based contribution education construction financial apportionment

(Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch. 81, Sec. 10. (AB 247) Effective July 3, 2024. Operative November 6, 2024, pursuant to Sec. 30 of Ch. 81.)

Section § 17072.32

Once a school project has been approved for funding under a specific program, the funds will be given out in parts that match what the local area is contributing, as long as the school district confirms they have a signed contract to finish the project. This rule has been in effect since January 1, 2008.

(a) For any project that has received an apportionment pursuant to Section 17072.30, funding shall be released in amounts equal to the amount of the local match upon certification by the school district that the school district has entered into a binding contract for completion of the approved project.

(b) This section is operative January 1, 2008.

school funding local match apportionment school district binding contract project completion fund release public school projects state funding January 1 2008 Section 17072.30 educational facilities approved project

(Repealed (in Sec. 8) and added by Stats. 2004, Ch. 894, Sec. 9. Effective January 1, 2005. Section operative January 1, 2008, by its own provisions.)

Section § 17072.33

If a school district in California buys land for a project, it can ask the state to give them funding that matches the amount the district is contributing once they start the escrow process for the property.

In the case of site acquisition, a district may request that the state’s share of site assistance be provided to the district in amounts equal to the amount of the local match when the district enters escrow for a site included within a project.

site acquisition district funding state share local match escrow process project site funding request school district property purchase state assistance land acquisition project development financial contribution state funding education finance

(Added by Stats. 1998, Ch. 407, Sec. 4. Effective August 27, 1998.)

Section § 17072.35

This law section explains how a grant for building new school facilities in California can be used. It covers a wide range of costs like design, construction, energy efficiency, and safety upgrades, such as earthquake-proofing. It also specifies that grants can be used to build or improve classrooms, school kitchens, preschool facilities, and areas for school nurses and counselors. Additionally, it encourages the use of efficient energy practices and allows for flexibility in design to meet the specific needs and features of each school.

(a) A grant for new construction may be used for any and all costs necessary to adequately house new pupils in any approved project, and those costs may only include the cost of design, engineering, testing, inspection, plan checking, construction management, site acquisition and development, evaluation and response action costs relating to hazardous substances at a new or existing schoolsite, demolition, construction, acquisition and installation of portable classrooms, landscaping, necessary utility costs, utility connections and other fees, equipment including telecommunication equipment to increase school security, furnishings, and the upgrading of electrical systems or the wiring or cabling of classrooms in order to accommodate educational technology, including schoolsite-based infrastructure necessary to provide access to broadband internet within the schoolsite. A grant for new construction may also be used to acquire an existing government or privately owned building, or a privately financed school building, and for the necessary costs of converting the government or privately owned building for public school use. A grant for new construction may also be used for the costs of designs and materials that promote the efficient use of energy and water, the maximum use of natural lighting and indoor air quality, the use of recycled materials and materials that emit a minimum of toxic substances, the use of acoustics conducive to teaching and learning, and other characteristics of high performance schools. A grant for new construction may be used for the costs of design, materials, and construction to advance state energy goals pursuant to state law, support outdoor learning environments, or to directly shade and protect pupils from higher average temperatures, which may include incorporating nature and natural materials. A grant for new construction may be used for seismic mitigation purposes and for related design, study, and testing costs.

(b) This section does not preclude a school district from using a grant for new construction to support the construction of a school kitchen, a transitional kindergarten classroom, a facility to support a local educational agency-administered preschool program, including, but not limited to, a California state preschool program set forth in Article 2 (commencing with Section 8207) of Chapter 2 of Part 6, that is operated by a school district and located on a schoolsite operated by the district, or a facility to support school nurses and counselors to increase access to health care and mental health services.

(c) In developing guidelines and regulations for consideration by the board, the State Department of Education shall provide a school district with maximum flexibility in the design and new construction of school facilities.

new construction grant school facilities design costs site acquisition hazardous substances portable classrooms energy efficiency indoor air quality high performance schools outdoor learning environments seismic mitigation school kitchens transitional kindergarten preschool program facilities health care services

(Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch. 81, Sec. 11. (AB 247) Effective July 3, 2024. Operative November 6, 2024, pursuant to Sec. 30 of Ch. 81.)