Bill Text: FL S1348 | 2022 | Regular Session | Comm Sub


Bill Title: Educational Scholarship Program Funding

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Failed) 2022-03-14 - Died in Appropriations Subcommittee on Education [S1348 Detail]

Download: Florida-2022-S1348-Comm_Sub.html
       Florida Senate - 2022                             CS for SB 1348
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Education; and Senator Diaz
       
       
       
       
       
       581-02283-22                                          20221348c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to educational scholarship program
    3         funding; amending s. 1002.394, F.S.; revising the
    4         Department of Education’s obligation to cross-check
    5         the list of Family Empowerment Scholarship Program
    6         students with public school enrollment lists;
    7         requiring the department to adjust payments to
    8         eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organizations
    9         and recalculate the Florida Education Finance Program
   10         (FEFP) allocation for school districts upon completion
   11         of the cross-check; deleting a requirement that the
   12         department verify that a student is not prohibited
   13         from receiving a scholarship; amending s. 1002.395,
   14         F.S.; requiring the department to recalculate the FEFP
   15         allocation for school districts upon completion of the
   16         cross-check for Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program
   17         students; amending s. 1002.40, F.S.; requiring the
   18         department to recalculate the FEFP allocation for
   19         school districts upon completion of the cross-check
   20         for Hope Scholarship Program students; providing an
   21         effective date.
   22          
   23  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   24  
   25         Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (8) and subsection
   26  (12) of section 1002.394, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   27         1002.394 The Family Empowerment Scholarship Program.—
   28         (8) DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION OBLIGATIONS.—
   29         (a) The department shall:
   30         1. Publish and update, as necessary, information on the
   31  department website about the Family Empowerment Scholarship
   32  Program, including, but not limited to, student eligibility
   33  criteria, parental responsibilities, and relevant data.
   34         2. Cross-check before each distribution of funds the list
   35  of participating scholarship students with the public school
   36  enrollment lists before each scholarship payment to avoid
   37  duplication.
   38         3. Maintain and publish a list of nationally norm
   39  referenced tests identified for purposes of satisfying the
   40  testing requirement in subparagraph (9)(c)1. The tests must meet
   41  industry standards of quality in accordance with state board
   42  rule.
   43         4. Notify eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding
   44  organizations of the deadlines for submitting the verified list
   45  of students determined to be eligible for a scholarship.
   46         5. Notify each school district of a parent’s participation
   47  in the scholarship program for purposes of paragraph (7)(f).
   48         6. Deny or terminate program participation upon a parent’s
   49  failure to comply with subsection (10).
   50         7. Notify the parent and the organization when a
   51  scholarship account is closed and program funds revert to the
   52  state.
   53         8. Notify an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding
   54  organization of any of the organization’s or other
   55  organization’s identified students who are receiving
   56  scholarships under this chapter.
   57         9. Maintain on its website a list of approved providers as
   58  required by s. 1002.66, eligible postsecondary educational
   59  institutions, eligible private schools, and eligible
   60  organizations and may identify or provide links to lists of
   61  other approved providers.
   62         10. Require each organization to verify eligible
   63  expenditures before the distribution of funds for any
   64  expenditures made pursuant to subparagraphs (4)(b)1. and 2.
   65  Review of expenditures made for services specified in
   66  subparagraphs (4)(b)3.-15. may be completed after the purchase
   67  is made.
   68         11. Investigate any written complaint of a violation of
   69  this section by a parent, a student, a private school, a public
   70  school, a school district, an organization, a provider, or
   71  another appropriate party in accordance with the process
   72  established under s. 1002.421.
   73         12. Require quarterly reports by an organization, which
   74  must include, at a minimum, the number of students participating
   75  in the program; the demographics of program participants; the
   76  disability category of program participants; the matrix level of
   77  services, if known; the program award amount per student; the
   78  total expenditures for the purposes specified in paragraph
   79  (4)(b); the types of providers of services to students; and any
   80  other information deemed necessary by the department.
   81         13. Notify eligible nonprofit scholarship funding
   82  organizations that scholarships may not be awarded in a school
   83  district in which the award will exceed 99 percent of the school
   84  district’s share of state funding through the Florida Education
   85  Finance Program as calculated by the department.
   86         14.Adjust payments to eligible nonprofit scholarship
   87  funding organizations and recalculate the Florida Education
   88  Finance Program allocation for school districts upon completion
   89  of the cross-check by the department pursuant to subparagraph 2.
   90         (12) SCHOLARSHIP FUNDING AND PAYMENT.—
   91         (a)1. Scholarships for students determined eligible
   92  pursuant to paragraph (3)(a) are established for up to 18,000
   93  students annually beginning in the 2019-2020 school year.
   94  Beginning in the 2020-2021 school year, the maximum number of
   95  students participating in the scholarship program under this
   96  section shall annually increase by 1.0 percent of the state’s
   97  total public school student enrollment. An eligible student who
   98  meets any of the following requirements shall be excluded from
   99  the maximum number of students if the student:
  100         a. Received a scholarship pursuant to s. 1002.395 during
  101  the previous school year but did not receive a renewal
  102  scholarship based solely on the eligible nonprofit scholarship
  103  funding organization’s lack of available funds after the
  104  organization fully exhausted its efforts to use funds available
  105  for awards under ss. 1002.395 and 1002.40(11)(i). Eligible
  106  nonprofit scholarship-funding organizations with students who
  107  meet the criterion in this subparagraph must annually notify the
  108  department in a format and by a date established by the
  109  department. The maximum number of scholarships awarded pursuant
  110  to this subparagraph shall not exceed 15,000 per school year;
  111         b. Is a dependent child of a member of the United States
  112  Armed Forces, a foster child, or an adopted child; or
  113         c. Is determined eligible pursuant to subparagraph (3)(a)1.
  114  or subparagraph (3)(a)2. and either spent the prior school year
  115  in attendance at a Florida public school or, beginning in the
  116  2022-2023 school year, is eligible to enroll in kindergarten.
  117  For purposes of this subparagraph, the term “prior school year
  118  in attendance” means that the student was enrolled and reported
  119  by a school district for funding during either the preceding
  120  October or February Florida Education Finance Program surveys in
  121  kindergarten through grade 12, which includes time spent in a
  122  Department of Juvenile Justice commitment program if funded
  123  under the Florida Education Finance Program.
  124         2. The scholarship amount provided to a student for any
  125  single school year shall be for tuition and fees for an eligible
  126  private school, not to exceed annual limits, which shall be
  127  determined in accordance with this subparagraph. The calculated
  128  amount for a participating student shall be based upon the grade
  129  level and school district in which the student was assigned as
  130  100 percent of the funds per unweighted full-time equivalent in
  131  the Florida Education Finance Program for a student in the basic
  132  program established pursuant to s. 1011.62(1)(c)1., plus a per
  133  full-time equivalent share of funds for all categorical
  134  programs, except for the Exceptional Student Education
  135  Guaranteed Allocation.
  136         3. The amount of the scholarship shall be the calculated
  137  amount or the amount of the private school’s tuition and fees,
  138  whichever is less. The amount of any assessment fee required by
  139  the participating private school and any costs to provide a
  140  digital device, including Internet access, if necessary, to the
  141  student may be paid from the total amount of the scholarship.
  142         4. A scholarship of $750 may be awarded to a student who is
  143  determined eligible pursuant to subparagraph (3)(a)1. or
  144  subparagraph (3)(a)2. and enrolled in a Florida public school
  145  that is different from the school to which the student was
  146  assigned or in a lab school as defined in s. 1002.32 if the
  147  school district does not provide the student with transportation
  148  to the school.
  149         5. Upon notification from the organization on July 1,
  150  September 1, December 1, and February 1 that an application has
  151  been approved for the program, the department shall verify that
  152  the student is not prohibited from receiving a scholarship
  153  pursuant to subsection (6). The organization must provide the
  154  department with the documentation necessary to verify the
  155  student’s participation. Upon receiving the documentation
  156  verification, the department shall transfer, from state funds
  157  only, the amount calculated pursuant to subparagraph 2. to the
  158  organization for quarterly disbursement to parents of
  159  participating students each school year in which the scholarship
  160  is in force. For a student exiting a Department of Juvenile
  161  Justice commitment program who chooses to participate in the
  162  scholarship program, the amount of the Family Empowerment
  163  Scholarship calculated pursuant to subparagraph 2. must be
  164  transferred from the school district in which the student last
  165  attended a public school before commitment to the Department of
  166  Juvenile Justice. When a student enters the scholarship program,
  167  the organization must receive all documentation required for the
  168  student’s participation, including the private school’s and the
  169  student’s fee schedules, at least 30 days before the first
  170  quarterly scholarship payment is made for the student.
  171         6. The initial payment shall be made after the
  172  organization’s verification of admission acceptance, and
  173  subsequent payments shall be made upon verification of continued
  174  enrollment and attendance at the private school. Payment must be
  175  by individual warrant made payable to the student’s parent or by
  176  funds transfer or any other means of payment that the department
  177  deems to be commercially viable or cost-effective. If the
  178  payment is made by warrant, the warrant must be delivered by the
  179  organization to the private school of the parent’s choice, and
  180  the parent shall restrictively endorse the warrant to the
  181  private school. An organization shall ensure that the parent to
  182  whom the warrant is made has restrictively endorsed the warrant
  183  to the private school for deposit into the account of the
  184  private school or that the parent has approved a funds transfer
  185  before any scholarship funds are deposited.
  186         (b)1. Scholarships for students determined eligible
  187  pursuant to paragraph (3)(b) are established for up to 20,000
  188  students annually beginning in the 2021-2022 school year.
  189  Beginning in the 2022-2023 school year, the maximum number of
  190  students participating in the scholarship program under this
  191  section shall annually increase by 1.0 percent of the state’s
  192  total exceptional student education full-time equivalent student
  193  enrollment, not including gifted students. An eligible student
  194  who meets any of the following requirements shall be excluded
  195  from the maximum number of students if the student:
  196         a. Received specialized instructional services under the
  197  Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program pursuant to s.
  198  1002.66 during the previous school year and the student has a
  199  current IEP developed by the local school board in accordance
  200  with rules of the State Board of Education;
  201         b. Is a dependent child of a member of the United States
  202  Armed Forces, a foster child, or an adopted child;
  203         c. Spent the prior school year in attendance at a Florida
  204  public school or the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind.
  205  For purposes of this subparagraph, the term “prior school year
  206  in attendance” means that the student was enrolled and reported
  207  by:
  208         (I) A school district for funding during either the
  209  preceding October or February Florida Education Finance Program
  210  surveys in kindergarten through grade 12, which includes time
  211  spent in a Department of Juvenile Justice commitment program if
  212  funded under the Florida Education Finance Program;
  213         (II) The Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind during
  214  the preceding October or February student membership surveys in
  215  kindergarten through grade 12;
  216         (III) A school district for funding during the preceding
  217  October or February Florida Education Finance Program surveys,
  218  was at least 4 years of age when enrolled and reported, and was
  219  eligible for services under s. 1003.21(1)(e); or
  220         (IV) Received a John M. McKay Scholarship for Students with
  221  Disabilities in the 2021-2022 school year.
  222         2. For a student who has a Level I to Level III matrix of
  223  services or a diagnosis by a physician or psychologist, the
  224  calculated scholarship amount for a student participating in the
  225  program must be based upon the grade level and school district
  226  in which the student would have been enrolled as the total funds
  227  per unweighted full-time equivalent in the Florida Education
  228  Finance Program for a student in the basic exceptional student
  229  education program pursuant to s. 1011.62(1)(c)1. and (e)1.c.,
  230  plus a per full-time equivalent share of funds for all
  231  categorical programs, as funded in the General Appropriations
  232  Act, except that for the exceptional student education
  233  guaranteed allocation as provided in s. 1011.62(1)(e)1.c. and
  234  2., the funds must be allocated based on the school district’s
  235  average exceptional student education guaranteed allocation
  236  funds per exceptional student education full-time equivalent
  237  student.
  238         3. For a student with a Level IV or Level V matrix of
  239  services, the calculated scholarship amount must be based upon
  240  the school district to which the student would have been
  241  assigned as the total funds per full-time equivalent for the
  242  Level IV or Level V exceptional student education program
  243  pursuant to s. 1011.62(1)(c)2.a. or b., plus a per-full time
  244  equivalent share of funds for all categorical programs, as
  245  funded in the General Appropriations Act.
  246         4. For a student who received a Gardiner Scholarship
  247  pursuant to s. 1002.385 in the 2020-2021 school year, the amount
  248  shall be the greater of the amount calculated pursuant to
  249  subparagraph 2. or the amount the student received for the 2020
  250  2021 school year.
  251         5. For a student who received a John M. McKay Scholarship
  252  pursuant to s. 1002.39 in the 2020-2021 school year, the amount
  253  shall be the greater of the amount calculated pursuant to
  254  subparagraph 2. or the amount the student received for the 2020
  255  2021 school year.
  256         6. Upon notification from an organization on July 1,
  257  September 1, December 1, and February 1 that an application has
  258  been approved for the program, the department shall verify that
  259  the student is not prohibited from receiving a scholarship
  260  pursuant to subsection (6). The organization must provide the
  261  department with the documentation necessary to verify the
  262  student’s participation.
  263         7. Upon receiving the documentation verification, the
  264  department shall release, from state funds only, the student’s
  265  scholarship funds to the organization, to be deposited into the
  266  student’s account in four equal amounts no later than September
  267  1, November 1, February 1, and April 1 of each school year in
  268  which the scholarship is in force.
  269         8. Accrued interest in the student’s account is in addition
  270  to, and not part of, the awarded funds. Program funds include
  271  both the awarded funds and accrued interest.
  272         9. The organization may develop a system for payment of
  273  benefits by funds transfer, including, but not limited to, debit
  274  cards, electronic payment cards, or any other means of payment
  275  which the department deems to be commercially viable or cost
  276  effective. A student’s scholarship award may not be reduced for
  277  debit card or electronic payment fees. Commodities or services
  278  related to the development of such a system must be procured by
  279  competitive solicitation unless they are purchased from a state
  280  term contract pursuant to s. 287.056.
  281         10. Moneys received pursuant to this section do not
  282  constitute taxable income to the qualified student or the parent
  283  of the qualified student.
  284         Section 2. Paragraph (d) of subsection (9) of section
  285  1002.395, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  286         1002.395 Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program.—
  287         (9) DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION OBLIGATIONS.—The Department of
  288  Education shall:
  289         (d) Cross-check the list of participating scholarship
  290  students with the public school enrollment lists to avoid
  291  duplication and recalculate the Florida Education Finance
  292  Program allocation for school districts upon completion of the
  293  cross-check.
  294         Section 3. Paragraph (a) of subsection (8) of section
  295  1002.40, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  296         1002.40 The Hope Scholarship Program.—
  297         (8) DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION OBLIGATIONS.—The department
  298  shall:
  299         (a) Cross-check the list of participating scholarship
  300  students with the public school enrollment lists to avoid
  301  duplication and recalculate the Florida Education Finance
  302  Program allocation for school districts upon completion of the
  303  cross-check.
  304         Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2022.

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