Bill Text: IN SB0484 | 2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: School buildings.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-01-14 - First reading: referred to Committee on Education and Career Development [SB0484 Detail]
Download: Indiana-2013-SB0484-Introduced.html
Citations Affected: IC 20-26-7-1; IC 20-31-9.5.
Synopsis: School buildings. Provides that the lease between a charter
school and a school corporation for a closed, unused, or unoccupied
school building must include agreed upon terms and conditions relating
to the operating costs associated with the school building. Provides that
a closed, unused, or unoccupied school building may not be leased to
a charter school in an amount that is less than the greater of: (1) $1; or
(2) the amount that the school corporation must annually pay for debt
or other obligations that the school corporation incurred for the school
building before entering into the lease or for liens that attached to the
school building before the school corporation entered into the lease.
Provides that a school corporation may send notice to the department
of education indicating that a closed, unused, or unoccupied school
building may be sold or disposed of based on certain reasons. Provides
that a charter school sponsor may request a hearing to show just cause
as to why the closed, unused, or unoccupied building should not be
sold or disposed of by the school corporation. Provides that the
department shall hold an administrative hearing to determine whether
the charter school sponsor has shown just cause as to why a school
corporation should not sell or dispose of the school building. Provides
that a special management team is responsible for the maintenance of
the buildings and grounds of a turnaround academy. Provides that the
contract into which the state board of education enters with a special
management team after June 30, 2013, must include a date on which
the operation of the school will be returned to the school corporation.
Effective: July 1, 2013.
January 14, 2013, read first time and referred to Committee on Education and Career
Development.
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A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning
education.
(1) is no longer needed for school purposes; or
(2) should, in the interests of the school corporation, be exchanged for other property;
the governing body may sell or exchange the property in accordance with IC 36-1-11.
(b) Money derived from the sale or exchange of property under this section shall be placed in any school fund:
(1) established under applicable law; and
(2) that the governing body considers appropriate.
(c) A governing body may not make a covenant that prohibits the sale of real property to another educational institution.
(d) This subsection does not apply to a school building that on July
1, 2011, is leased or loaned by the school corporation that owns the
school building to another entity. Except as provided in subsection
(j), a governing body shall make available for lease or purchase to any
charter school (as defined in IC 20-24-1-4) any school building owned
by the school corporation that:
(1) either:
(A) is not used in whole or in part for classroom instruction at
the time the charter school seeks to lease the building; or
(B) appears on the list compiled by the department under
subsection (e); and
(2) was previously used for classroom instruction;
in order for the charter school to conduct classroom instruction.
(e) Each governing body shall inform the department whenever a
school building that was previously used for classroom instruction is
closed, unused, or unoccupied. The department shall maintain a list of
closed, unused, or unoccupied school buildings and make the list
available on the department's Internet web site. Each school
corporation shall provide a list of closed, unused, or unoccupied
buildings to the department by the date set by the department. The
department must update the list each year before August 31.
(f) A school building that appears for the first time on the
department's list under subsection (e) shall be designated as
"Unavailable until (a date two (2) years after the school building first
appears on the list)" if the governing body of the school corporation
that owns the school building indicates the school building may be
reclaimed during that period for classroom instruction, which must
begin not later than one (1) year after the school building is reclaimed.
If the school building remains unused for classroom instruction one (1)
year after being reclaimed, the governing body shall place the school
building on the department's list. A governing body may reclaim a
school building only one (1) time under this subsection.
(g) If a charter school wishes to use a school building on the list
created under subsection (e), the charter school shall send a letter of
intent to the department. The department shall notify the school
corporation of the charter school's intent, and the school corporation
that owns the school building shall lease the school building to the
charter school for one dollar ($1) per year for as long as the charter
school uses the school building for classroom instruction or for a term
at the charter school's discretion. or The lease must include agreed
upon terms and conditions relating to the operating costs
associated with the school building. However, the yearly lease
payment may not be less than the greater of:
(1) one dollar ($1) per year; or
(2) a yearly payment equal to the amount that the school
corporation must annually pay for:
(A) debt and other obligations incurred for; or
(B) liens attached to;
the school building by the school corporation before the lease.
Instead of leasing the school building to the charter school, the
governing body may sell the school building to the charter school for
one dollar ($1). The charter school must begin to use the school
building for classroom instruction not later than two (2) years after
acquiring the school building. If the school building is not used for
classroom instruction within two (2) years after acquiring the school
building, the school building shall be placed on the department's list
under subsection (e). If during the term of the lease the charter school
closes or ceases using the school building for classroom instruction, the
school building shall be placed on the department's list under
subsection (e).
(h) During the term of a lease under subsection (g), the charter
school is responsible for the direct expenses related to the school
building leased, including utilities, insurance, maintenance, repairs,
and remodeling. The school corporation is responsible for any debt
incurred for or liens that attached to the school building before the
charter school leased the school building.
(i) If a school building appears on the department's list under
subsection (e) for at least forty-eight (48) months, the school
corporation may sell or otherwise dispose of the school building in any
manner the governing body considers appropriate.
(j) Notwithstanding subsection (d), a governing body may
provide notice to the department, on a form prescribed by the
department, that the governing body intends to sell or otherwise
dispose of a vacant or unused school building in accordance with
IC 36-1-11. The governing body shall specify in the notice that:
(1) the governing body intends to sell or lease the school
building to a bona fide third party for consideration;
(2) there is little likelihood that any charter school would have
an interest in leasing or purchasing the school building
because of the condition of the building or other extenuating
circumstances; or
(3) the governing body intends to sell, lease, or donate the
school building to another governmental entity for public use
if the governing body has territorial jurisdiction over the
location of the school building.
If a charter school sponsor does not timely submit an objection
under subsection (l), the governing body may sell or otherwise
dispose of the unused or vacant school building in accordance with
IC 36-1-11 after receiving written notification from the department
indicating that the department has not received a timely request
for a hearing from a charter school sponsor under subsection (l).
(k) Upon receipt of a notice under subsection (j), the department
shall maintain on the department's Internet web site:
(1) a copy of the notice;
(2) the date the notice was received by the department; and
(3) the date by which the department must receive an
objection to the notice from a charter school sponsor under
subsection (l).
(l) Not later than thirty (30) days after the date the department
receives notice under subsection (j), a charter school sponsor may
request a hearing under this subsection. If the department timely
receives a request from a charter school sponsor under this
subsection, the department shall appoint a hearing officer to act as
the ultimate authority for the department and shall conduct a
hearing in accordance with IC 4-21.5. At the hearing, the charter
school sponsor must show just cause as to why the governing body
should not be allowed to sell or dispose of a vacant school building
under subsection (j). If, in the final order, the hearing officer
determines that the charter school sponsor has shown just cause as
to why the building should not be sold or disposed under subsection
(j), the vacant or unused school building must be made available to
a charter school as provided under subsection (d). If the hearing
officer determines in the final order that the charter school sponsor
has not shown just cause under this subsection, the governing body
may proceed or otherwise dispose of the vacant or unused school
building in accordance with IC 36-1-11 in the manner specified in
the notice.
(1) the special management team shall:
(A) continue to use the school building, the accompanying real property, and the building's contents, equipment, and supplies; and
(B) maintain and repair the buildings and grounds in a manner consistent with the maintenance and repair of the school corporation's other buildings and grounds; and
(2) the school corporation shall continue to
The school corporation shall consult with the special management team regarding these matters;
(b) If the special management team contracts with a school corporation for goods or services, the school corporation may not charge the special management team more for the goods or services than the school corporation pays for the goods or services.
(c) The special management team and the school corporation's board shall hold a joint public meeting at least two (2) times each year to discuss issues and progress concerning the turnaround academy.
(1) A requirement that the special management team and the governing body conduct a public meeting two (2) times each year to provide a report concerning:
(A) student achievement of affected students; and
(B) the condition of the school property and to address issues related to the school property.
(2) A requirement that the student instruction must be provided by teachers licensed under IC 20-28-5.
(3) For a contract entered into after June 30, 2013, a date on which the operation of the school will be returned to the school corporation.
(b) Individuals employed by the special management team are entitled to participate in either:
(1) the state teachers' retirement fund created by IC 5-10.4; or
(2) the public employees' retirement fund created by IC 5-10.3.
(c) Employees of a special management team are not required to organize and collectively bargain under IC 20-29-6.
