73R8444 ESH-D
By Bivins S.B. No. 131
Substitute the following for S.B. No. 131:
By Ogden C.S.S.B. No. 131
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to assistance to school districts in the acquisition,
1-3 construction, renovation, or improvement of instructional
1-4 facilities.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Chapter 20, Education Code, is amended by adding
1-7 Subchapter H to read as follows:
1-8 SUBCHAPTER H. SCHOOL FACILITIES EQUALIZATION PROGRAM
1-9 Sec. 20.961. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-10 (1) "Agency" means the Central Education Agency.
1-11 (2) "Authority" means the Texas Public Finance
1-12 Authority.
1-13 (3) "Instructional facility" means real property, an
1-14 improvement to real property, or a necessary fixture of an
1-15 improvement to real property that is used predominantly for
1-16 teaching the curriculum required under Section 21.101 of this code.
1-17 (4) "School district" means any public school district
1-18 in this state.
1-19 (5) "Wealth per student" means the taxable property
1-20 values reported by the comptroller to the commissioner of education
1-21 under Section 11.86 of this code divided by the number of students
1-22 in average daily attendance as determined under Section 16.006 of
1-23 this code.
1-24 Sec. 20.962. SCHOOL FACILITIES EQUALIZATION PROGRAM; BONDS.
2-1 (a) The agency shall administer the school facilities equalization
2-2 program.
2-3 (b) The authority shall issue general obligation bonds in
2-4 the amount of $750 million to finance the program.
2-5 (c) In connection with the issuance and administration of
2-6 bonds, the authority may exercise the rights and powers granted to
2-7 an issuer by:
2-8 (1) Chapter 503, Acts of the 54th Legislature, 1955
2-9 (Article 717k, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes); and
2-10 (2) the Bond Procedures Act of 1981 (Article 717k-6,
2-11 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes).
2-12 Sec. 20.963. FUND. (a) The school facilities equalization
2-13 fund is in the state treasury. The fund shall be administered by
2-14 the state treasurer as directed by the agency. The state treasurer
2-15 may create accounts in the fund as the agency considers necessary.
2-16 (b) The authority or the state treasurer shall deposit in
2-17 the fund:
2-18 (1) the proceeds of all bonds sold under this
2-19 subchapter, less the costs of issuance;
2-20 (2) any federal or private funds received and
2-21 designated for assisting school districts in acquiring,
2-22 constructing, renovating, or improving instructional facilities;
2-23 (3) any investment securities purchased by the fund;
2-24 (4) interest or other earnings derived from the
2-25 amounts described in Subdivisions (1)-(3) of this subsection; and
2-26 (5) any amounts transferred for deposit into the fund.
2-27 (c) Except as provided by Subsection (e) of this section,
3-1 money in the fund may be used only to:
3-2 (1) provide to eligible school districts a state share
3-3 for the acquisition, construction, renovation, or improvement of
3-4 instructional facilities; and
3-5 (2) administer the school facilities equalization
3-6 program.
3-7 (d) The cost of administering the school facilities
3-8 equalization program in a fiscal biennium may not exceed 0.1
3-9 percent of the amount of bonds issued under this subchapter in that
3-10 biennium.
3-11 (e) The agency may use interest or other earnings derived
3-12 from the amounts described in Subsections (b)(1)-(3) of this
3-13 section for payment of inspections performed under Section 20.971
3-14 of this code.
3-15 Sec. 20.964. SCHOOL DISTRICT ELIGIBILITY. A school district
3-16 is eligible under the school facilities equalization program if the
3-17 district:
3-18 (1) has a wealth per student that is less than the
3-19 statewide average wealth per student; and
3-20 (2) has an effective public school tax rate of at
3-21 least $1.16 for the 1992-1993 school year.
3-22 Sec. 20.965. APPLICATION. (a) An eligible school district
3-23 must submit a single application for the approval of a state share
3-24 of the district's most urgently needed school facilities project in
3-25 a category listed in Section 20.966(a) of this code for which a
3-26 construction contract has not been awarded as of the effective date
3-27 of this section. An application must:
4-1 (1) specify the category listed in Section 20.966(a)
4-2 of this code in which the project belongs;
4-3 (2) state the amount of the state share requested;
4-4 (3) be filed by the date specified by the agency; and
4-5 (4) contain any other information required by the
4-6 agency.
4-7 (b) Based on the applications, the agency shall rank each
4-8 project in order of priority. The agency shall rank each category
4-9 of projects listed in Section 20.966(a) of this code separately.
4-10 The rankings must be based on a 180-point scale as follows:
4-11 (1) the degree of need accounts for a maximum of 60
4-12 points;
4-13 (2) the adequacy of the proposed project to meet the
4-14 need accounts for a maximum of 60 points; and
4-15 (3) the cost-effectiveness of the proposal in relation
4-16 to other available alternatives accounts for a maximum of 60
4-17 points.
4-18 (c) The agency shall adopt objective standards for awarding
4-19 points under Subsection (b) of this section.
4-20 (d) To be eligible for a state share, a project must meet
4-21 the standards established under Section 16.402 of this code and
4-22 must score at least 120 points under Subsection (b) of this
4-23 section. The project with the highest score is entitled to first
4-24 priority. If two or more projects in a category have the same
4-25 score, the agency shall rank the projects using a random drawing.
4-26 Sec. 20.966. ALLOCATION OF BOND PROCEEDS. (a) Proceeds of
4-27 bonds issued under Section 20.962 of this code are allocated as
5-1 follows:
5-2 (1) $150 million for assisting school districts in
5-3 renovating or repairing existing instructional facilities that
5-4 violate applicable health and safety standards;
5-5 (2) $150 million for assisting school districts in
5-6 renovating or repairing existing instructional facilities that do
5-7 not violate applicable health and safety standards but are not
5-8 adequate;
5-9 (3) $250 million for assisting school districts in
5-10 constructing new instructional facilities to relieve existing
5-11 overcrowding; and
5-12 (4) $200 million for assisting school districts in
5-13 constructing new instructional facilities in anticipation of growth
5-14 in the near future.
5-15 (b) After the agency has approved a state share for each
5-16 eligible project in a category under Subsection (a)(3) or (4) of
5-17 this section, the agency shall reallocate any remaining bond
5-18 proceeds in the category to the category under Subsection (a)(1) of
5-19 this section to the extent necessary to approve state shares for
5-20 projects meeting the minimum requirements of Section 20.965(d) of
5-21 this code in that category that have not been funded.
5-22 (c) After the agency has made the reallocation required by
5-23 Subsection (b) of this section, the agency shall reallocate any
5-24 remaining bond proceeds allocated to a category under Subsection
5-25 (a)(3) or (4) of this section to the category under Subsection
5-26 (a)(2) of this section to the extent necessary to approve state
5-27 shares for projects meeting the minimum requirements of Section
6-1 20.965(d) of this code in that category that have not been funded.
6-2 (d) If any bond proceeds remain available after the agency
6-3 has made the reallocation required by Subsection (c) of this
6-4 section, the agency may:
6-5 (1) notify each school district that additional funds
6-6 are available under the facilities grant program; and
6-7 (2) approve state shares for projects in the
6-8 categories listed in Subsection (a) of this section.
6-9 (e) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the
6-10 agency may transfer from one category under Subsection (a) of this
6-11 section to another an amount not to exceed 35 percent of the amount
6-12 allocated under Subsection (a) of this section to the category from
6-13 which the transfer is made.
6-14 Sec. 20.967. APPROVAL OF STATE SHARE; AMOUNT. (a) The
6-15 agency shall approve a state share for each eligible project based
6-16 on the ranking of eligible projects under Section 20.965 of this
6-17 code. Except as provided by Section 20.966(b), (c), (d), or (e) of
6-18 this code, the agency may not approve a state share that exceeds
6-19 the balance of the amount available in that category listed in
6-20 Section 20.966(a) of this code.
6-21 (b) A state share for a project under this subchapter may
6-22 not exceed the lesser of:
6-23 (1) $9 million;
6-24 (2) an amount equal to $2,000 multiplied by the school
6-25 district's average daily attendance in the previous school year; or
6-26 (3) 80 percent of the total cost of the project.
6-27 (c) Subject to Subsection (b) of this section, the amount of
7-1 a state share is determined by the following formula:
7-2 where:
7-3 "SS" is the amount of the state share;
7-4 "W" is the school district's wealth per student; and
7-5 "P" is the total cost of the project.
7-6 (d) For purposes of Article VII, Section 5, of the Texas
7-7 Constitution, the state's share under this subchapter is a loan to
7-8 the school district. Except as provided by Section 20.970(b) or
7-9 (c) of this code, the state forgives the payment of principal and
7-10 interest on a loan under this subchapter.
7-11 Sec. 20.968. JOINT APPLICATION. (a) Two eligible school
7-12 districts may apply jointly for assistance under this subchapter
7-13 for a project to be used by both districts.
7-14 (b) A state share for a project under this subchapter for
7-15 school districts applying jointly may not exceed the lesser of:
7-16 (1) $9 million;
7-17 (2) an amount equal to $2,000 multiplied by the school
7-18 districts' combined average daily attendance in the previous school
7-19 year; or
7-20 (3) 80 percent of the total cost of the project.
7-21 (c) The amount of a state share for a project under this
7-22 subchapter for school districts applying jointly is determined by
7-23 the formula provided by Section 20.967(c) of this code, except that
7-24 "W" is computed by dividing the taxable values of property
7-25 determined under Section 11.86 of this code in both districts by
7-26 the number of students in regular average daily attendance in both
7-27 districts.
8-1 (d) Each district applying jointly for assistance under this
8-2 subchapter must comply with this subchapter and is liable for the
8-3 full amount of state funds provided under this subchapter as
8-4 provided by Section 20.970 of this code.
8-5 Sec. 20.969. PAYMENT. Before the agency may disburse a
8-6 state share under this subchapter, the school district must
8-7 demonstrate to the agency's satisfaction that the district is
8-8 capable of paying the district's share of the cost of the project
8-9 by demonstrating that:
8-10 (1) the district has obtained voter approval of the
8-11 issuance of bonds sufficient to pay the district's share of the
8-12 project, without regard to whether the bonds were approved for a
8-13 project other than that for which the state share was approved; or
8-14 (2) the district has or will have cash reserves
8-15 sufficient to pay the district's share of the cost of the project.
8-16 Sec. 20.970. USE OF FUNDS. (a) A school district that
8-17 receives state funds under this subchapter may use the funds only
8-18 for the acquisition, construction, renovation, or improvement of
8-19 the instructional facility for which the state share was approved.
8-20 (b) A school district must refund to the agency any portion
8-21 of state funds provided under this subchapter that are not used as
8-22 required by Subsection (a) of this section before the second
8-23 anniversary of the date the state share was approved. On
8-24 application of the district, the agency may grant the district an
8-25 additional year in which to complete the project.
8-26 (c) The commissioner of education shall deduct from
8-27 foundation school fund payments to a district any amount of state
9-1 funds provided under this subchapter that the commissioner finds
9-2 the district has used for a purpose other than the acquisition,
9-3 construction, renovation, or improvement of the instructional
9-4 facility for which the state share was approved.
9-5 Sec. 20.971. INSPECTION FOLLOWING COMPLETION OF PROJECT. A
9-6 school district shall notify the agency when a project financed
9-7 with a state share under this subchapter has been completed. The
9-8 agency shall inspect the project and verify that it has been
9-9 satisfactorily completed.
9-10 SECTION 2. The Public School Facilities Funding Act (Article
9-11 717t, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) is repealed.
9-12 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect only if the constitutional
9-13 amendment proposed by S.J.R. No. 4, 73rd Legislature, Regular
9-14 Session, 1993, is approved by the voters. If the proposed
9-15 amendment is not approved by the voters, this Act has no effect.
9-16 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
9-17 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
9-18 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
9-19 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
9-20 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
9-21 and that this Act take effect and be in force according to its
9-22 terms, and it is so enacted.